According to reports, Julian Draxler has been handed a £85,000 fine from Wolfsburg for declaring that he wants to leave the club this summer.
The midfielder announced on Monday that he wanted to be sold by the Bundesliga club, instantly alerting Arsenal who have been long-term admires of the player.
On Wednesday. Wolfsburg announced Draxler would not be sold this summer, although they reveled that a buyout clause in his contract would be activated next summer.
The following day, Draxler missed the club’s friendly against Malmo amid claims he was injured, but according to Bild, he was having a meeting with the directors at Wolfsburg, where is it believed that he was notified of his punishment.
The moment that all Arsenal fans feared finally arrived yesterday.
Firstly, according to reports, it is understood that Arsene Wenger will refuse to increase his bid for Alexandre Lacazette.
Having had an offer of £29m turned down by Lyon’s president Jean-Michel Aulas last week, it is now understood that the Gunners boss is no longer willing to return to the bargaining table with an improved offer.
This comes despite Lyon’s manager Bruno Genesio saying on Tuesday that Lacazette ‘could leave’ Lyon if there was an offer ‘that cannot be refused.’
To further compound Arsenal’s misery, Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri dashed the Gunners hopes of signing Riyad Mahrez by insisting that his side would never sell to their Premier League competitors.
While Ranieri failed to keep N’Golo Kante at the King Power this summer, Mahrez – a fan favourite alongside Jamie Vardy – holds the club much closer to hear than his former team mate.
Speaking earlier, he said: “The chairman told me at the beginning, when we spoke, that we want to keep everybody.
“Kante had a clause and wanted to go, but the others stay with us. It is not a distraction for me. I am used to speaking about these things.
“But it is important that my players believe in the new moment. It is normal others want Riyad and other players, but we must focus on the job. I speak with him a lot and I hope I can help him.”
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