Wolves name club-record asking price for Arsenal to sign Pedro Neto

Wolves are considering letting Arsenal target Pedro Neto leave the club before the transfer window closes but have set a hefty asking price, according to reports.

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The Gunners have been linked with a late swoop for the Portuguese winger with Jorge Mendes holding talks with both clubs to see if a deal is possible.

Mikel Arteta has been keen to bring in a new winger throughout the summer and Arsenal briefly pursued Raphinha until it became apparent he only wanted to join Barcelona.

With Nicolas Pepe now closing in on a loan move to Ligue 1 side Nice, Arsenal’s need for a new wide-man has increased once more.

The Athletic broke the news that the Gunners had made Neto their top wing target and they have been given some positive indications that a deal might be possible.

Super-agent Mendes, who representers his compatriot, is playing a key role in the negotiations and there is hope that the signings of Matheus Nunes and Goncalo Guedes might soften Wolves’ original not-for-sale stance.

Now talkSPORT are claiming that the Black Country club are prepared to cash in on Neto, but only if they receive an offer in excess of £50million.

That would eclipse the club-record £45m fee they received from Liverpool for Diogo Jota in 2020 – another transfer that was facilitated by Mendes.

Liverpool’s deal was constructed in several instalments over a number of years, though Wolves are likely to demand a much bigger up front fee for Neto from Arsenal, particularly with the transfer deadline fast approaching.

While the Gunners have already spent big this summer to sign Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Fabio Vieira, they may still have enough money left in the kitty to land Neto too.

Arteta is thought to be a big admirer of the 22-year-old, who had an injury-hit campaign last season but bagged five goals and laid on six assists in the 2020/21 campaign.

Wolves have a very strong negotiating position, however, with Neto having only signed a new five-year contract back in March that will keep him at the club until 2027.

The deal is also dependent on Pepe leaving the Emirates but, despite being left out of the squad for the weekend’s win over Bournemouth, Arsenal and Nice are still not in agreement over how much of the Ivorian’s salary will be covered by the French side.

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