Rogers picks Chelsea in £117m hijack
Morgan Rogers is going to Chelsea, not Arsenal. A £117m deal agreed with Aston Villa after Xabi Alonso personally intervened to push him toward Stamford Bridge (1) (2) (5). The move came together inside 24 hours, with Chelsea moving fast once they knew Arsenal were closing in (9). Your club had been the frontrunner. Now you watch a top attacking target cross London in blue.
Saliba played through a back fracture, surgery now
William Saliba needs back surgery after playing through a fracture at the World Cup (10). The timeline is unclear, but Arsenal are already considering cover. Maxence Lacroix of Crystal Palace has been discussed internally, and there is a connection: Lacroix and Eberechi Eze spoke often about Arsenal, with Lacroix calling it "one of his favourite teams" (10).
Tzolis incoming from Club Brugge
Arsenal have an agreement to sign Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge (11) (13). The Greek winger is expected to slot in as Leandro Trossard's replacement on the left. Club Brugge manager Ivan Leko called it a "big thing for him, big thing for Club Brugge, big thing for Belgian football" and praised Tzolis as "first coming on the training base, last staying there" (11).
Get the next Arsenal FC brief by email
This article went out to subscribers as a brief. Get the next one straight to your inbox, free.
Free · No spam · Unsubscribe anytime
Guimaraes wants the move, says Wyness
Bruno Guimaraes has "all the cards" and wants Arsenal. That is the word from former Everton chief Keith Wyness, who suggested a fee around £90m could be the middle ground between Arsenal's offer and Newcastle's asking price (15). "If he decides he wants to go to London and play for Arsenal, which I'm hearing he does, then you may see Arsenal make the deal sweet enough," Wyness said (15).
Diomande approach knocked back by PSG
Arsenal made direct calls about Yan Diomande, Fabrizio Romano reports, but PSG rejected the approach immediately (8). The centre-back is not moving.
Barcola still on the radar after Rogers miss
Missing out on Rogers does not close the window on Bradley Barcola. Romano says Arsenal remain in the picture for the PSG winger, though Liverpool are also circling (14). Nothing advanced yet, but the interest is real.
Hart: rest Rice and Saka for the bronze match
Joe Hart has urged Thomas Tuchel to sit Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka out of England's bronze medal match. "There's no point in Declan playing. The players who look genuinely shattered, the last thing they need is to go and slug it out in Miami," Hart said on Saturday (6). Saka scored a hat-trick in the semi-final defeat to France, so the fatigue is real.
Fan reactions
Saka's World Cup hat-trick against France has the fanbase buzzing. He is only the fourth Englishman to score a World Cup treble, after Kane, Lineker, and Hurst, and did it while carrying a hamstring concern. "A hattrick playing on one hamstring. Truly the original star boy," one fan wrote. Saka himself kept it simple when asked about worried Arsenal supporters: "I'm fit, I'm fit." Read the discussion
