Arsenal set to enter Marc Guehi transfer race as Liverpool's worst fears come true

Liverpool remains interested in Marc Guehi with Arsenal also ready to enter the race after Manchester City made a big push for the Crystal Palace captain this month

Marc Guehi of Crystal Palace is out of contract in the summer(Image: Getty Images)

Arsenal is poised to join the chase for England defender Marc Guehi. Manchester City has emerged as strong contenders to sign the Crystal Palace captain, having made significant strides to secure the deal this month.

However, Arsenal is now in the mix alongside Liverpool, who looked set to sign Guehi on deadline day last summer only for Palace to pull the plug at the final moment.

It's yet to be seen whether Arsenal will make a bid or wait until the summer when Guehi's contract runs out. The Gunners showed interest in Guehi last summer before opting for a different path, signing Spanish prospect Cristhian Mosquera from Valencia and Piero Hincapie from Bayer Leverkusen.

Nonetheless, Arsenal remains a keen admirer and should Guehi choose to see out the final six months of his contract at Palace before leaving on a free transfer, there will be no shortage of interest from Europe's elite clubs.

City will need to make a substantial offer to convince Palace to sell this month, despite Guehi's contract nearing its end. Liverpool had a $47M (£35m) plus $7M (£5m) in add-ons bid accepted last summer, but failed to finalize the deal on transfer deadline day.

Palace is aware that they could command a similar fee in January, as City is particularly eager after losing key defenders Josko Gvardiol and Ruben Dias to injury, with John Stones also sidelined. Palace will need to consider the potential value of retaining Guehi, given its ongoing European campaign, upcoming FA Cup matches, and aspirations for a European spot.

This could lead them to demand around $54M (£40m), testing City's determination. Any club looking to strike a deal now will be aware that Guehi could secure a larger contract in the summer as a free agent.

Marc Guehi of Crystal Palace(Image: Daniel Chesterton/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)

City would need to offer substantial wages and a hefty transfer fee, meaning that while they have the upper hand, other clubs are keeping an eye on the possibility of a deal now or in the future.

There remains uncertainty over Pep Guardiola's long-term future, although Enzo Maresca - who has been suggested as a possible replacement - wanted Chelsea to push to re-sign Guehi during his tenure at Stamford Bridge.

Liverpool remains interested, while Bayern Munich's interest is notably strong, with manager Vincent Kompany being a big fan. Harry Kane would also strongly advocate for his England teammate to make the move to Germany.

Arsenal may view Guehi as a no-brainer on a free transfer in the summer due to his versatility, despite already having a solid defence with William Saliba and Gabriel forming one of the Premier League's best defensive partnerships.

However, Arsenal demonstrated last summer, with sporting director Andrea Berta at the helm, that they harbour serious ambitions in the transfer market and seek fierce competition across all positions. Securing arguably England's finest defender on a free transfer would represent an enormous opportunity that Arsenal would be eager to pursue.

"Honestly I don't know what will happen," Palace boss Oliver Glasner said about Guehi this week. "If you're just valuing sports, everyone in the club will say Marc has to stay. The chairman will tell you the same. But it's not one-dimensional.

"Nothing in life is one-dimensional. So if you see the financial situation, it's very important. Everybody wants him to play for Crystal Palace, sign a new contract and stay here forever.

"That's what everybody will tell you. On the other side, there's the situation that the contract ends in summer and if somebody is coming, there will be a moment when the club says, now the financial issue is more important than the sport issue. I'm not so naive not to know that if a massive offer comes from City and Marc wants to do it, it will happen."