Arsenal: Aaron Ramsdale handed exit route as Mikel Arteta told Douglas Luiz fee

Arsenal Mikel Arteta will look to rebound from last weekend’s 1-0 loss at Aston Villa when they host Brighton at the Emirates on Sunday.

The Gunners dropped to second in the table after Liverpool defeated Crystal Palace earlier in the day, but Mikel Arteta’s men know they can reclaim top spot against the Seagulls, albeit potentially only temporarily given Jurgen Klopp’s side play Manchester United hours later. Arsenal is well aware of Brighton’s threat, having lost 3-0 the last time the two sides met in north London.

With the January transfer window only a few weeks away, Arsenal have been linked with a number of players in order to bolster their title challenge in the second half of the season. That being said, here are the main talking points that emerged from the Emirates on Sunday, December 17.

Arteta informed him of the amount he must pay for Luiz.

Arsenal has long been interested in Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz, but have been told that the Brazilian will not be cheap if he is to leave Villa Park.

Former Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole has stated that if the Gunners are serious about signing the midfielder, they will have to pay the kind of fees seen in last summer’s biggest deals.

When asked about Luiz, Cole told TNT Sports, “If you look at the price tag around them [Declan Rice, Moises Caicedo, and Enzo Fernandes], it has to be in the ballpark.”

“He has been performing in the same league as them, arguably better than Caicedo.” Rice has also been outstanding, as he has been. But he’s in and around those numbers, and he’s a tremendous asset to the club.”

Ramsdale’s possible exit path

Chelsea are interested in axed goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, as speculation about his long-term future at Arsenal continues.

Ramsdale began the season as Arsenal’s first-choice goalkeeper, but was quickly replaced by David Raya, who the Gunners signed on loan from Brentford in the summer.

Despite Arteta’s initial claim that he’d regularly chop and change his goalkeeper, Raya has played the vast majority of minutes since joining, leading many to believe Ramsdale is on his way out of the Emirates.

Chelsea, the Gunners’ London rivals, are said to be keeping an eye on Ramsdale’s situation and could be tempted to pursue the England international. Current Blues no.1 Robert Sanchez is expected to be out for several weeks, adding fuel to the Ramsdale rumours.

After falling out with a number of key figures at the Amex, Leandro Trossard joined Arsenal from Brighton in January of this year.

The Belgium international clashed with both his manager, Roberto De Zerbi, and one of his teammates, ex-Liverpool player Adam Lallana. The former Red made some interesting comments about how Brighton would be fine without Trossard, fueling speculation about animosity between the two.

“You only need to look at the last three games without him [Trossard], I think it’s been 5-1, 4-1 and 3-0,” Lallana said in an interview with Sky Sports. “As I said earlier, players can leave Brighton, but we’re fine without them.”

“When Neal [Maupay] moved on, we had enough without [Yves] Bissouma, [Marc] Cucurella, Ben White, and Dan Burn.” So if Leo leaves, we’ll be fine. We’re already getting by.”

On Sunday, the two will square off in an awkward match.