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What's the story?
In recent years Arsenal have been perhaps overly reliant on Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil for goals, with the two players scoring 32 goals and providing 19 assists between them in the league last season. The two have shared a telepathic connection at times, and it seems like their connection extends to their contracts, with both players refusing to sign contract extensions.
With his two biggest attacking threats on their way out of the club, Arsene Wenger is looking to the January transfer window as a chance to reinforce his team. According to reports from the Sun, Arsenal have an initial bid for Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema turned down.
In case you didn't know...
Karim Benzema has started the season in appaling form and has only managed to score 4 goals in 14 appearances, with 2 of those goals coming in a match against Apoel Nicosia in the Champions League. Real Madrid have struggled considerably more than they did last season and currently sit ten points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona.
The heart of the matter
Arsenal's £40 million bid for Benzema was rejected by Madrid, with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez reportedly saying that the figure was embarrassing. Perez still considers Karim Benzema to be one of the best strikers in the world, and will only sell the Frenchman for a significantly higher fee.
Karim Benzema has been linked with Arsenal in the past and Wenger has expressed his admiration for the French striker publicly. Wenger will need more than words to sign the striker, and Arsenal will have to return with a better offer if they have any hope of signing him. Luckily for Arsenal, Madrid has shown an interest in signing Alexis Sanchez and the Chilean could be used as a bargaining chip.
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Author's Take
Perez has shown in the past that he is a tough negotiator, and he is unlikely to let Benzema leave for anything less than the amount he values him at. Arsenal have a long history of being thrifty and they are unlikely to pay much more than their first bid of £40 million.
