Arsenal have made an improved verbal offer worth £60million for Chelsea attacker Kai Havertz.
The new package is understood to be worth a guaranteed £55million plus an extra £5m in bonuses.
Having seen their original offer of around £50million turned down by Chelsea last week, Arsenal have continued talks with Chelsea over agreeing a fee for the Germany international.
Those discussions accelerated over the weekend and Mail Sport now understands that a fresh verbal offer has been made.
Arsenal want to wrap a deal up quickly and already have a broad agreement in place over personal terms.
View galleryChelsea rejected the Gunners’ original offer of £50m last week but talks have accelerated
View galleryArsenal boss Mikel Arteta wants to wrap up a deal quickly, with personal terms broadly agreed
Havertz will be offered a long-term contract worth a minimum of £210,000-per-week.
The ball is now in Chelsea’s court over whether to agree to sell Havertz for £60m.
The Blues value the forward between £70m-£75m.
Pertinently, Havertz has already given the go-ahead to joining Arsenal. That is, provided the two clubs can agree a deal for his departure.
Chelsea want to raise funds as they look to press ahead with their own recruitment plans.
Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo is at the top of their list of summer transfer targets.
But Caicedo will cost at least £100m and Chelsea need to sell before being comfortable committing that level of money.
Arsenal believe that Havertz’s versatility makes him a must-win target for the club, according to reports.
The 23-year-old has supplanted Declan Rice at the Gunners’ primary focus, although Arsenal are confident that both of their top targets will make the move to north London in the early stages of the summer market.
Havertz joined Chelsea in 2020 and has been regular starter under the last five managerial periods at the beleaguered west London club.
But despite the Blues willingly looking to extend the player’s current contract – which is due to keep him at Stamford Bridge until 2025 – Havertz is believed to be focused on securing a transfer.
As per ESPN, Arsenal have hinted that as well as operating as a No 10 or a No 8 in Arteta’s starting XI, the club plans to use Havertz interchangeably in any of the three attacking positions at the top of a 4-3-3 system.
The Spanish manager is so convinced of the value of Havertz’s potential versatility, that Arteta is believed to have played a large role in ongoing negotiations for the player.
Havertz has played a number of forward roles for Chelsea during his tenure at Stamford Bridge, but this season has been largely deployed as an out-and-out No 9 due to a striker crisis.
Romelu Lukaku was loaned back to Inter Milan after a disastrous return during the 2021-22 campaign, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang failed to recapture his once-fine goalscoring form, academy prospect Armando Broja suffered a horror injury, and David Datro Fofana – purchased in January – was seldom used.
Bayern Munich has also shown interest in setting up a return to Germany for Havertz – and Chelsea remain optimistic for a bidding war to drive up his price – whilst Real Madrid’s pursuit of the player is believed to have cooled somewhat.
The Blues have found themselves in a similar position regarding a chasm in valuations with Havertz’s starting XI team-mate, Mason Mount.
Mount is heavily fancied by Manchester United, but whilst the Red Devils are believed to have agreed personal terms with the midfielder and feel confident Mount will make the move north, the Blues are reluctant to accept United’s position on the player’s price.
Chelsea value the England starlet at £80m, whereas United’s opening offer was closer to half the amount.
While Erik ten Hag’s side are preparing a second bid worth £50m for the 24-year-old, the Blues are believed to be unwilling to see the academy product go for less than £70m.
Source: MailOnlineNews
