By 1970’s gooner
Arsenal’s interest in Brazilian wonder kid, Diogo Luis Santo, who plays for Portuguesa in Brazil may be about to end as another European club are in advanced negotiations for his signature.
Arsenal have already hit a brick wall in their attempts to sign the player. The apparently intransigent Portuguesa president, Manuel da Lupa, revealed that they have twice turned down Arsenal’s advances in recent months.
"We have already rejected offers from Arsenal for being too low” he said a few months ago.
Now in have stepped Olympiakos of Greece who are in desperate need to augment their forward options on view of their forthcoming Champions League commitments.
Reports in the Brazilian press are indicating that representatives from the Greek club have already traveled to Brazil and are in negotiations with Manuel Da Lupa and the player’s manager.
They have also been assisted in their efforts by Diogo’s mother, Claudia, who in an outburst in the Brazilian media lambasted Da Lupa and Portuguesa for the unrealistically exorbitant release clause on her son’s contract.
"How can he have a 40 million euros price tag when his current salary is so low? My son has a very good offer to play abroad and you should let him go!" she said.
Not surprisingly Olympiakos has already agreed personal terms with Diogo for a four year contract worth £4m.
They have also offered a bigger fee to Poruguesa than Arsenal.
As 70% of the player’s rights are held by Portuguesa and the other 30% by his manager, Olumpiakos’s offer for £6.3m for 70% of the player’s rights values the player at £9m.
This is much higher than Arsenal’s offer for £7m for 100% and much closer to Portuguesa’s reported target of around £11m.
Da Lupa seemed hopeful about the outcome of the negotiations:“We have spoken with Olympiakos’s vice president and have progressed well.
There’s goodwill on both sides and I am hopeful that we may have more news in the next few days” he said.
However Poruguesa’s coach Walter Espinosa is desperate to keep Diogo: “The club cannot loose its bigger star” he said.
There is obviously a conflict there but Portuguesa's well documented financial difficulties may win Espinosa over in the end!
Arsenal’s South American scout Sandro Orlandelli is the one that first alerted Steve Rowley about Diogo’s exploits in front of goal.
Diogo, who is only 20, is one of the brightest prospects in Brazil. He combines speed, skill and technical ability with a robust 6ft frame. He has scored 22 goals last season and 18 in his debut season.
Arsenal are however faced with two obstacles in their pursuit of the youngster.
Diogo is unlikely to be able to obtain a work permit next season unless he was able to make a successful “Special talent” visa application.
As a result it is likely, if he comes to Arsenal, that he would be loaned out to link side Salamanca for a year.
This obviously would not be ideal for Arsenal as they may like the player to benefit from training with the squad in London under the watchful eye of Arsene Wenger.
The second obstacle is the fact that the player belongs to more than one party and Premier League clubs have agreed to introduce new regulations to outlaw third-party ownership of players.
The rules were informally applied during the January transfer window and are to be made official this summer.
These rules do not necessarily apply to Greece which may prove a disadvantage to Arsenal as they have to bid for 100% of the player’s rights. The player’s manager however may want to keep his 30% ownership for future gain.
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