Real Sociedad on Merino to Arsenal: 'team we didn't want to show up showed up'

 ‘We know what Merino’s wishes are,’ says club president Jokin Aperribay

ALL QUIET: Mikel Merino of Real Sociedad

BRENTFORD striker Ivan Toney is wasting his peak years considering a move to Saudi Arabia while he is at his "peak", believes ex-Premier League striker Chris Sutton.

The Bees rejected a £35m bid for the 28-year-old from Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli last week with manager Thomas Frank leaving Toney out of the side which beat Crystal Palace 2-1 on Sunday because of "transfer interest".

Sutton reckons the England striker should choose to stay in the Premier League.

“At this stage of his career, I think Saudi is a no-no," Sutton told BBC Radio 5 Live. "He has proven himself in the Premier League and he has all the attributes. His link up, his physicality, set-piece [ability] and his all-round play have developed really well.

"You can have all the money in the world but this is Ivan Toney at his peak and I would like to see him stay in the Premier League. I would go to Saudi Arabia when I was 35 and past it. This is such a waste for Ivan Toney," Sutton added.

"That doesn’t mean he can’t go to Saudi and then come back to the Premier League, but why doesn’t he just wait another season and then get a move? He’s 28, his career was flourishing then he had the ban, but then he had the high of the Euros at the summer.

"He is in a really good place at the moment. From Brentford’s point of view, at £50m, you can understand why they would sell him for that amount with a year left on his contract. Purely from a footballing perspective, that would be such a waste of him going to Saudi. Manchester United are striker-less at this moment in time, he would be a good fit there."

Meanwhile Real Sociedad president has admitted that he has held talks with Arsenal over a move for Mikel Merino, but warned that they must match the asking price for the Spain midfielder.

Merino was left out of Sociedad’s first game of the season at the weekend – a 2-1 defeat at home against Real Vallecano on Sunday – with the manager, Imanol Alguacil, insisting beforehand that the 28-year-old will be “with the team to the death”.

Talks between Arsenal’s sporting director, Edu, and the Spanish club are continuing after Sociedad turned down a first formal bid believed to be worth €25m (£21.4m). Sociedad are understood to be holding out for a fee of about €35m for Merino, who has one year left on his contract. Merino has rejected their offer of a new deal, having already agreed personal terms with Arsenal.

The Spanish club’s president, Jokin Aperribay, confirmed to the radio station Onda Vasca that the midfielder has signalled his intention to depart this summer. “Merino was clear that he didn’t want to say he was renewing and then leave. It wasn’t a surprise to us,” he said. “Unfortunately, one of the teams we didn’t want to show up showed up.

“We will talk to Arsenal and defend the interests of La Real. When we consider that the offer is good, we will say yes. We know what Merino’s wishes are, so we decided that he should not be called up [for the game on Sunday].” 

Arsenal have rejected a bid of £25m from Nottingham Forest for Eddie Nketiah. The England striker, for whom Marseille had two bids rejected earlier in the summer, is thought to be valued at about £30m by Arsenal. Wolves are trying to sign Aaron Ramsdale from Arsenal and have submitted a loan proposal with an option to buy the goalkeeper next summer. They face competition for Ramsdale and recognise Arsenal would prefer a sale this window. Ajax had a loan bid rejected last week and Southampton and Bournemouth are among those to have expressed an interest.

Burnley midfielder Sander Berge is heading to Fulham. A bid of around £20million with £5m of add-ons, is likely to see the 26-year-old move to London.