Edu Gaspar appears to be lining up an Arsenal move for a winger who is attracting plenty of interest in the summer transfer window…
What’s the latest on Harvey Barnes to Arsenal?
According to the Daily Mail, Arsenal are chasing Harvey Barnes as Mikel Arteta looks to add some much-needed attacking depth to his squad ahead of next season.
The Gunners will face competition, however, as Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United are also keen on the winger. Spurs recently made a joint bid of £50m for Barnes and teammate James Maddison, yet this was rejected by the Foxes.
The Telegraph claimed earlier this month that the Championship side will demand around £40m for Barnes this summer and this is certainly within Arteta’s budget.
Who is Harvey Barnes similar to?
Anything is a possibility, especially since the player will be looking for a move to a Premier League club during the transfer window and Arteta could make his move soon.
Barnes was one of the Foxes’ few bright sparks in what was a terrible campaign, resulting in their relegation to the second tier, just seven years after they stunned the rest of the country by winning the league.
The winger scored 13 goals in 34 top-flight appearances from the left wing, and the 25-year-old is also statistically similar to Manchester United sensation Marcus Rashford.
The United winger registered a quite remarkable 41 goal contributions across 56 games and since Erik ten Hag arrived at the Old Trafford side, he has taken his game to new heights, and a comparison to a player such as Rashford isn’t a bad one to have, especially with Arteta looking for more quality in his attack.
The 52-cap maestro is the fifth-most comparable player to Barnes according to FBref and with Rashford and Barnes preferring to cut inside often during games while not diving into tackles, they may be alike in more ways than one.
Over the previous 365 days, Barnes ranks in the top 10% across Europe’s big five leagues for goals, shots on target and goals per shot, while the United star also ranks in the 10% for the same metrics, proving that they are both among the continent's finest in terms of prowess in front of goal and the ability to create plenty of scoring opportunities for themselves.
Dubbed a “livewire” by pundit Alan Hutton, Arsenal may have the ideal chance to secure their very own Rashford with a move for the one-cap dynamo.