Report: Arsenal offer £110k-a-week man to Champions League club to help balance books

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Arsenal have reportedly offered Hector Bellerin to PSG as Mikel Arteta steps up his efforts to trim the Gunners squad and balance the books at the Emirates Stadium, according to The Times.

With Arsenal seemingly on the verge of signing Gabriel Magalhaes from Lille, the Gunners are reported to have made five defenders available to recoup funds, with Bellerin said to be on the list.

PSG, meanwhile, are said to be on the lookout for a new right-back during the transfer window after the departure of Thomas Meunier.

The 28-year-old Belgium international left as a free agent upon the end of his contract in June before signing for Borussia Dortmund.

The Times claims that Bellerin has been offered to the beaten Champions League finalists, who are looking to assess how the 25-year-old has recovered from a knee injury last season.

Bellerin joined Arsenal from Barcelona’s academy in 2011 and has made 204 competitive appearances for the Gunners, registering eight goals and 25 assists.

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Given Bellerin remains Arteta’s first-choice right-back at Arsenal, with only Cedric Soares as a like-for-like replacement, letting the Spaniard go without having anyone else lined up seems a risky move.

Admittedly, speculation surrounding the £110,000-a-week ace is nothing new this summer – The Telegraph claimed earlier this month that he’s open to a new challenge.

Likewise, Ainsley Maitland-Niles – one potential candidate who could step in for Bellerin – is being tipped by the same report for a departure from the Emirates Stadium.

Unless Arteta has someone else lined up in that position right away, it doesn’t make sense for him to let two right-backs leave in the same window.