Lucas Perez will reportedly push through an exit from the Emirates this summer following a frustrating debut season in the Premier League.
The Spanish winger had attracted interest from the likes of Everton last summer before the Gunners hijacked the deal by triggering the £17.3m release clause on his contract.Perez followed to endure one of his toughest spells in professional as he found himself often on the substitutes’ bench while most of his playing time came in the Cup and Champions League games, where his side held an advantage in terms of team strength.
The former Deportivo man sustained a thigh injury in late March, and he therein struggled to make the matchday squad on a couple of occasions before making the bench for the FA Cup final versus Chelsea.Perez’s representative Rodrigo Fernandez Lovelle was quite open over his client’s situation, and suggested that the forward will move on after having been starved off first-team opportunities.
“The idea is to be able to play for another club,” Lovelle said. “We want to leave and Arsenal already know. Do you know anyone who is happy but has no opportunities?” he told PA Sport.
Meanwhile, Arsene Wenger, who signed a new two-year deal earlier this week, revealed his desire to keep hold of the winger despite his limited first-team action last term.
“If I am the manager I would love to keep him but we have to sit down and see if he has a realistic chance to play,” he told Sky Sports, in May.
“He’s a top-quality striker but I couldn’t give him the games he wants and deserves, I confess that. I feel a bit sorry for him.”
Perez looks likely to leave Arsenal this summer in order to push for a national team berth and Lovelle insists that a temporary return to Deportivo would be a possibility.