When Matteo Guendouzi came to Arsenal from Lorient in 2018, he was relatively unknown. The Frenchman joined the gunners for a fee of 7 million GBP, which seemed a lot for an unheard-of teenager. He quickly established himself as a world-class midfielder in a struggling Arsenal team under Unai Emery. After Emery left, Guendouzi kept putting in a great shift under Mikel Arteta. Things started going downhill after Guendouzi misbehaved after a loss against Brighton and Hove Albion in the second game since the restart. He has since not featured for Mikel Arteta and is being reported to be training alone. Mikel Arteta also told that Guendouzi has an “attitude problem”.
Phillipe Coutinho was the greatest player in the Premier League once upon a time. Seeing his performances, Barcelona bought him for around 120 million. His form has since been shaky, and the Brazilian has underperformed for Barcelona and was sent out on loan to Bayern Munich after just one season. Bayern also have made it clear that they will not be buying him. They already gave the Barca loanee’s no.10 shirt to Leroy Sane. Coutinho’s former club Liverpool have since won the Champions League and the Premier League. The 28-year-old might need a fresh start.
Matteo Guendouzi might be just the right player for Barca. He is only 21 and will fit well in the aging squad. He has the right attitude and talent and with some experience, has the potential to be in Barca’s midfield for years to come.
Arsenal, on the other hand, are in need of a world-class playmaker to replace Mesut Özil. The German has not featured for Arsenal since the restart and it seems likely that he will move away from the Emirates in the next transfer window. Coutinho has already proven himself as a world-class playmaker in the league so he seems like the perfect man to replace the current Arsenal no.10.
It only depends on Arsenal for the exchange to take place!