Hangeland on the verge of joining Gunners, or is he?

This season has been an utter disappointment for Arsenal fans and Arsene Wenger is determined not to let something similar happen next season, thus he has already started searching for new signings that could finally help Arsenal mount a serious title challenge. It is in defence that Gunners had the most problems this season, and no wonder that an experienced defender is the first thing on Wenger’s mind. Fulham’s Brede Hangeland looks like an obvious choice as he is experienced, very reliable and is already used to playing in the Premiership. Even though Roy Hodgson would like him to stay, it seems that the Cottagers will not be able to reject a hefty bid from Arsenal and Hangeland is likely to be Wenger’s first signing of the next transfer window.

American-born footballer arrived to Fulham in January 2008 from Danish club FC Copenhagen and he didn’t have a lot of problems to grow accustomed to Premiership. He had already had plenty of international experience playing for Norway national team and he was even named the captain of the national team before the start of this season. The experienced centre-back largely impressed during his first full Premier League season and big English clubs started showing interest in his services. He was the part of one of the best defences in the league and no wonder that Arsene Wenger sees him as the man who can add stability to Arsenal’s back line. The deal is likely to be completed very soon as Gunners would have no problems paying the asking price of £8 million. The Cottagers will do everything in their power to keep the towering centre-back in the club and they are prepared to offer him a new deal but Hangeland is unlikely to miss the great opportunity to play for the Emirates outfit. Fulham boss Roy Hodgson stated that it would be very difficult to keep the player at Craven Cottage but that he would, nevertheless, offer him a new deal.

The reports are suggesting that apart from Hangeland, Wenger is interested in signing Ajax defender Thomas Vermaelen, who can play at centre-back or left-back.

As I was writing this article, the news arrived that Hangeland might not be joining Arsenal after all and that he was prepared to stay in the club providing he was offered a new deal. This transfer saga is set to continue, therefore, stay tuned for the latest developments.

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