Thomas Frank has fired a message to Arsenal over Brentford star David Raya after the Gunners moved ahead of in the race to sign him.
with Mikel Arteta a long-time admirer of his compatriot.
Bayern Munich had also been linked with the 27-year-old but indicate that Raya prefers a move to north and Arsenal are expected to bid soon to accelerate talks, while negotiations with the side are now off.
The Gunners already have as their No.1 goalkeeper – with American acting as an understudy – but Arteta wants to bring in higher quality cover and competition for the the international.
‘I hope [we get an offer], we are waiting to sell,’ Frank told NBC Sports. ‘David would like to go. That’s fine for us. If a club want to buy [him] they just need to find out the price. So I guess it should be simple, but apparently it’s very difficult!’
Frank, speaking in a post-match press conference after a friendly against Aston Villa, added: ‘He’s worth £40m – I’d love to get that for him. He was one of the four best keepers in the Premier League last season.
‘What is the price for a player with one year left? Declan Rice went to Arsenal for £105m – is that a fair price? And Harry Kane, one year left, and they’re talking about £150m?
‘Anyway, it’s not up to me. It’s always complicated. Two sides of the coin when it comes to negotiations and we meet somewhere in the middle.’
Raya’s contract with Brentford expires next summer and he has made it clear he will not be renewing his deal, with the west London club keen to cash in ahead of the new season.
They have resolutely stuck to a price tag of £40m – a fee that prompted Arsenal’s north London rivals Tottenham to back away from talks earlier this summer – and have already signed a replacement for Raya in the shape of Mark Flekken.
