Valencia have made two signings this summer, but remain hamstrung by their financial difficulties as they try to arm new manager Gennaro Gattuso with a capable squad.
Those signings, Samu Castillejo and Hugo Duro, amounted to the modest fee of €4m. That was paid to confirm Duro’s presence next season after a season on loan with Valencia, while Castillejo arrived on a free.
Which is perhaps why it was so surprising to see Valencia’s name dropped in conjunction with a Premier League player on Wednesday. Speaking to 100% Deporte, in quotes carried by Marca, Lucas Torreira’s agent Pablo Betancur spoke about the links between the two.
“There is a meeting with Valencia because [Gennaro] Gattuso wants Torreira. Arsenal don’t want to get rid of him. The numbers at Arsenal were very good.”
“We have a pre-agreement with Gattuso so that Torreira plays at Valencia. Today there is an important meeting about it. [Mikel] Arteta, manager of Arsenal, wants to have him for the preseason.”
While it may be true that Valencia are looking for a central midfielder, it’s improbable that they could afford to recruit from the Premier League unless it was on very favourable terms. Sources close to Football Espana understand that there is no agreement between Torreira and Valencia.
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