Ex-Arsenal chief can have big say in Mohammed Kudus deal as Gunners chase star

Ex-Arsenal chief Sven Mislintat can have a big say in the Gunners’ pursuit of Mohammed Kudus this summer as he is now the technical director of Ajax. Arsenal sporting director Edu has already worked with Mislintat to thrash out a deal for Jurrien Timber – and he could now return to the negotiation table with his predecessor in an attempt to get his hands on Kudus.

Arsenal appeared to be on course to land their first Premier League trophy since 2004 last time around as they led the table for a large part of the season. But after their form nosedived towards the end of the campaign, they were ultimately leapfrogged by Manchester City, who secured their fourth top-flight title in five years.

Arsenal will be desperate to go one better this season and have boosted their chances of claiming silverware by signing Kai Havertz from Chelsea and Declan Rice from West Ham as well as Timber. But Edu and Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta still want more new faces at the Emirates Stadium ahead of the new campaign and have their eyes firmly fixed on Kudus.

Ghana forward Kudus joined Ajax from Nordsjaelland in 2020 and has gone on to bag 23 goals and 11 assists in 84 games for the Dutch giants. The 22-year-old has helped Ajax win two Eredivisie titles and scored four goals in the Champions League group stages last season.

The player would reportedly prefer to move to Arsenal this summer rather than Chelsea, who are also said to be interested in securing his services. So Mislintat, who worked in north London from December 2017 until February 2019, may have another key role to play in Arsenal’s transfer plans after sanctioning a £38million move for Timber earlier this month.

Mislintat and Ajax are thought to value Kudus at around £40m. But the 50-year-old German has already explained that the figure could increase as the transfer deadline approaches.

“The best thing is if Kudus and [Edson] Alvarez stay, then we keep two top players,” Mislintat told Aglemeen Dagblad. “But it is also possible that one goes, or both. It is important for us that the relationship with the players remains good. This can be done by being transparent and applying good principles. As we get closer to the deadline, the transfer fee for example goes up.”

Kudus is strong and is known for his outstanding dribbling abilities, traits that could help him light up the Premier League. And the fact that he can play as a right winger, an attacking midfielder or a striker means he would become a valuable asset for Arsenal if he did make the move to England.