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    Emi Buendia closes in on club-record £38million move as Aston Villa beat Arsenal to Norwich star

    EMI BUENDIA is on the verge of a move to Aston Villa from Norwich in a £38million deal.Villa have outbid Arsenal for the Argentine winger and have agreed to pay an initial £33million with £5m in add-ons.
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    Emi Buendia is close to moving to Aston Villa over ArsenalCredit: Getty
    Odegaard looks set to return to Real Madrid this summerCredit: Getty
    Norwich, who initially demanded £40m, turned down £30m-plus offers from both Arsenal and Villa.
    Arsenal failed to make a second attempt so now Villa are set to wrap up the signature of their number one summer target.
    Buendia, 24, the Championship player of the year, has been a bargain since signing from Spanish side Getafa for £1.5million three years ago.
    He scored 15 times in the Canaries’ title-winning season under Daniel Farke. And Buendia, who initially wanted to leave last summer, had a gentleman’s agreement with the club that he would be allowed to leave if a major offer came in.
    Norwich have a similar arrangement with Max Aarons but despite a £20m January offer from Roma, there has currently been no interest in the right-back.
    The Canaries will now reinvest all the cash in new players as they bid to avoid a repeat of the 2019-20 season when they finished bottom of the Premier League.
    But the news of Villa leading the race for Buendia comes amid the expectation Arsenal loanee Odegaard is set to return to Real Madrid.
    According to The Times, the Norwegian is thought to be excited to play under Carlo Ancelotti, who left Everton to take over from Zinedine Zidane.
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    Odegaard has been a valuable asset to Mikel Arteta in the second half of the season, which saw the Gunners’ form improve dramatically.
    He scored one goal and provided two assists in 14 Premier League appearances and was one of the shining lights in what was a dismal season for the North London outfit.
    But he was only on a short-term loan deal with the Gunners and now looks set to return to Madrid to fight for his place in the Spanish giants’ side.
    Speaking to TV 2 Sporten about Ancelotti, Odegaard said: “It is a coach I know and with whom I had a good relationship when he was last there. In that sense, it is positive.
    “But beyond that, one day has passed, so I do not know too much about what he thinks about things.”
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    Arsenal slip behind Aston Villa in race for Emi Buendia transfer with Gunners also losing hope of Martin Odegaard deal

    ARSENAL have reportedly lost ground in their pursuit of transfer target Emi Buendia as hopes of keeping Martin Odegaard suffered a major blow.The Gunners joined Aston Villa in making a formal offer to Norwich for Buendia, which was thought to be worth more than £30million.
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    Buendia lifted the Championship title with Norwich last seasonCredit: Getty
    Odegaard looks set to return to Real Madrid this summerCredit: Getty
    And while The Canaries appear to be holding out for £40m, Goal now understands Aston Villa are the front-runners to secure the 24-year-old Argentine’s signature.
    Goal journalist Charlie Watts tweeted: “Understand Aston Villa have moved ahead in the pursuit of Emi Buendia.
    “They are closer to meeting Norwich’s demands.”
    Buendia was sensational for Norwich in their Championship campaign which saw them win the title and return to the Premier League at the first time of asking.
    The Argentine scored 15 goals and assisted a further 17 in what was a remarkably impressive season.
    But the news of Villa leading the race for Buendia comes amid the expectation Arsenal loanee Odegaard is set to return to Real Madrid.
    According to The Times, the Norwegian is thought to be excited to play under Carlo Ancelotti, who left Everton to take over from Zinedine Zidane.
    Odegaard has been a valuable asset to Mikel Arteta in the second half of the season, which saw the Gunners’ form improve dramatically.
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    He scored one goal and provided two assists in 14 Premier League appearances and was one of the shining lights in what was a dismal season for the North London outfit.
    But he was only on a short-term loan deal with the Gunners and now looks set to return to Madrid to fight for his place in the Spanish giants’ side.
    Speaking to TV 2 Sporten about Ancelotti, Odegaard said: “It is a coach I know and with whom I had a good relationship when he was last there. In that sense, it is positive.
    “But beyond that, one day has passed, so I do not know too much about what he thinks about things.”
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    Arsenal star Bukayo Saka admits being England’s Mr Versatile can get tough More

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    Arsenal chasing £18m-rated Brazilian striker Yuri Alberto, 20, but face competition from Barcelona for summer transfer

    ARSENAL are pursuing highly-rated striker Yuri Alberto, according to reports.The 20-year-old has impressed for Brazilian side Internacional this season, scoring seven goals in 17 appearances for the club.
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    Alberto has caught the attention of Barcelona as well as ArsenalCredit: AP
    The striker has garnered a lot of interest after an impressive season in BrazilCredit: AFP
    As well as performing well at club level, Alberto has also picked up two caps for the Brazil Under-23s team.
    And Arsenal will be hoping they can secure the youngster’s services this summer.
    According to Globoesporte, the Gunners are keen to bring Alberto in to bolster their attacking options.
    But they will have to fend off interest from Spanish giants Barcelona if they are to seal the deal.
    Arsenal are said to have been keeping tabs on Alberto since his time at Santos, where he netted three times in 27 games.
    SER Catalunya radio reported on Thursday that he had been offered to Barcelona for the price of £11m.
    But that offer ‘did not excite’ Barca despite it appearing to be a bargain price for the young talent.
    However, Internacional are still hoping they can receive a substantial fee for the striker.
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    Elsewhere in the transfer window, Arsenal have made an official offer of more than £30million for Norwich star Emi Buendia.
    But Norwich, who do not need to sell financially, are playing hard ball and insist they want £40m for the Championship player of the year.
    The Canaries, who accept their star player will leave, expect the clubs to increase their fight over their star asset during the next couple of days but a deal could be close.
    Buendia, 24, was a £1.5million bargain from Getafe in 2018 but Norwich will have to hand over 20 per cent sell-on fee to the Spanish side.
    With 15 goals, Buendia helped Norwich return to the Premier League at the first attempt.
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