SURPRISE Arsenal transfer announced by Ornstein

Robin Bairner

29 Aug 2025 15:30 BST
4 min read

Arsenal are closing in on the signing of Bayer Leverkusen defender Piero Hincapie, but the Gunners could complete at least one unexpected deal before the transfer window shuts, transfer insider David Ornstein has announced.

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Mikel Arteta’s side are the biggest net spenders in the Premier League this season, having splashed out €285 million more than they have sold.

The Gunners may seek to balance this figure out at least a little before the end of the window. Signing Hincapie on loan is one way of doing this, as Arsenal will recoup a significant fee for Jakub Kiwior, who the Ecuador international will replace.

Another player potentially heading out the Emirates door, though, is Ukraine international Oleksandr Zinchenko, who is also collateral damage to the arrival of Hincapie.

Although capable of playing both at left-back and in midfield, Arsenal are well covered in these areas. With an offer arriving from Marseille, according to Ornstein, a sale is being considered.

Current ETV

Oleksandr Zinchenko

D (L)

Arsenal

Oleksandr Zinchenko

D (L)

Arsenal

ETV Range

€15.4M - €18.8M

Zinchenko to Marseille?

Marseille, who will compete in the Champions League this season after finishing second in Ligue 1 last term, are targeting Zinchenko on a permanent basis, according to The Athletic.

A deal appears to be hanging in the balance, however. The wages of the 28-year-old promise to be difficult to match for OM, with this a major hurdle to be cleared if the deal is to progress.

Zinchenko, who has been linked with a move to Napoli, AC Milan and Fenerbahce, is in the final year of hi Arsenal contract and has an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €17.1m.

His stock has fallen at the Emirates following the emergence of Myles Lewis-Skelly, while he also finds Riccardo Calafiori ahead of him in the pecking order. Hincapie’s probable arrival will push him further down Arteta’s thinking.

In pure personal terms, it was easily the worst season I ever experienced as a professional.

- Oleksandr Zinchenko

“I was basically out of the starting XI altogether, bar a few isolated matches,” Zinchenko wrote in a new chapter for his autobiography entitled Believe.

“In pure personal terms, it was easily the worst season I ever experienced as a professional. A player who doesn’t play is nothing. It’s one thing when your body lets you down. That can happen.

"But going from one of the established play¬ers of the side to unused sub is much harder to deal with. The sense of rejection you feel if your manager no longer believes in you can take the stuffing out of you, even if you’re the most resilient guy on the planet."

Having started just nine games in all competitions last season, it would be little surprise to see Zinchenko leave Arsenal before the transfer deadline, but there are still some big obstacles to overcome before this deal is done.

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