Arsenal get green light to sign €50m star who dreams of Gunners move

27 Jun 2026 13:50 BST | 4 min read

Tom Weber | Writer

Multilingual sports writer who specialises in European football and American soccer.

Make us your Google favourite

Arsenal have received the all-clear to pursue Sporting CP midfielder Morten Hjulmand, who is a boyhood fan of the club.

Article continues under the video

The Denmark international is expected to leave the Lisbon club after deciding to stay last year, despite fielding strong interest, including from Man Utd. Sporting are understood to be appreciative of the fact that Hjulmand remained and will not stand in his way this summer.

Last year, the club insisted that suitors must trigger his €80 million release clause, but it is now believed that Hjulmand will be available for a more reasonable €50m. He has been a standout performer for Sporting since joining in 2023 from Lecce and is the Portuguese side's captain.

Current ETV

Morten Hjulmand

DM (C)

Sporting

Morten Hjulmand

DM (C)

Sporting

ETV Range

€39.8M - €48.6M

Sporting have already resigned themselves to losing the Dane and initiated the process to sign a replacement several weeks ago. Now, they are set to announce Hjulmand's heir-apparent.

According to Fabrizio Romano, Sporting have agreed a deal to sign Real Betis star Sergi Altimira in an €18m deal plus add-ons. The Spaniard is set to complete his medical within the next 24 hours.

Altimira signing clears way for Hjulmand move

With a deal for Altimira wrapped up, Sporting and Hjulmand can now set about finding a move for the captain that suits all parties. The 27-year-old has once again been linked with Man Utd in recent weeks, though it currently looks as though they are focusing all their energy on Mateus Fernandes.

This could potentially clear the way for Arsenal, who were said to have been "in touch" with Hjulmand's camp last month. Intriguingly, the Dane is a boyhood fan of the club and even has a tattoo of the Gunners' badge. He would surely jump at the chance to join.

Arsenal are currently locked in discussions with Newcastle United over a deal for Bruno Guimaraes. However, the Magpies, who could potentially lose Sandro Tonali this summer, insist that the Brazil international is not for sale.

Hjulmand would represent a significantly cheaper option, albeit he is not quite at the level of Guimaraes. That said, given Arsenal's midfield depth, a player like the Sporting star would absolutely be able to do a job, perhaps more so than compatriot Christian Norgaard, who struggled for minutes in his first season at the Emirates and may depart this summer.

Either way, it looks increasingly likely that Hjulmand will leave Sporting this summer, and it would not come as a shock if the Premier League were to be his destination.

The FootballTransfers app

Check out FootballTransfers' new app for all of football's big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.

The FootballTransfers app is available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store. Download here:

•Google Play

•App Store