Going forward with Higuain

It was a decade ago, in April, that Florentino Perez claimed Real Madrid would “never, never, never” sign David Beckham.

Within three months, the former Manchester United midfielder was being paraded at the Bernabeu. It was only yesterday, then, that the same Real president was stating there were “no offers on the table” from Arsenal for Gonzalo Higuain. That comment actually may be technically true, but it overlooks the extensive contact between the clubs over the past month and the fact the fee is essentially the last thing to be agreed.

The point here is, when it comes to the transfer market, the public posturing from football people is not always totally correct but is usually completely self-serving.

There was a strong element of it over the last few days as the Luis Suarez saga escalated with a few strategic leaks. Virtually summing up the chaos of this time of year, the news first broke after a betting company closed the market on the Uruguayan going to the Emirates. Yet, as eyebrow-raising as that appeared at the time, it now coincides with the point at which Arsenal made a definite enquiry for Suarez — if not quite a £30m bid.

Liverpool, of course, have made their own public position clear: the forward is definitively not for sale. Suarez himself, meanwhile, has stated the sole reason he wants to leave is media intrusion and indicated the only clubs he would depart Anfield for are Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Arsenal’s stance, however, is at least a little more complex. On the one side, there is the club’s recent reserved transfer policy and Arsene Wenger’s apparent refusal to budge from this. On the other, there is the pressure to finally make some big purchases from chief executive Ivan Gazidis and this ongoing public debate about their future direction.

Between those positions, it has even been broached by some around the club that the public leaking of the bid for Suarez is merely part of a grand strategy to force Real to act on their own interest in the Uruguayan and thereby finally sell Higuain for a more agreeable price.

Amid all this intrigue, there are a few things we can take to be — at the least — truer. Liverpool will sell Suarez if they get the right offer. The Uruguayan would also probably be open to joining a high-profile Champions League club.

Arsenal, meanwhile, have undeniably realised all of the change in the Premier League this summer represents a proper opportunity for the club to catch up and make a statement. Along those lines, it is entirely feasible that a player of the spark and imagination of Suarez could lift them out of their recent stagnation and push Wenger’s side to the verge of a proper title challenge for the first time in six seasons.

It would also appear to finally confirm Liverpool’s status. Losing a player of such quality to one of the two Spanish giants, after all, is somewhat acceptable. Losing him to a club you actively aim to overtake, however, is almost a flag of surrender.

The crucial question appears to surround Arsenal’s resolve to make their own next step. Will they push the boat out to properly try and tip the Premier League table after the managerial changes at the top three clubs, or will they somewhat typically hope that their own existing steady course is enough to navigate through the uncertainty elsewhere? Again, the key may lie in the Higuain transfer. It almost sums up Arsenal’s recent situation that, while they are hoping to smash the club’s transfer record and make a significant statement by signing the Argentine for under £25m, Real believe that amount is derisory and want nothing less than £30m — and this for a player they are not exactly intent on keeping, despite Perez’s words.

If the Suarez move is no more than a strategy to leverage that purchase, then it’s difficult to think Arsenal have changed too much. If, however, it represents a big push in its own right, then these could be genuinely exciting times for the club. One thing seems certain: it’s going to take more than £30m. That is no word of a lie.