Mikel Arteta in line for major transfer boost as Arsenal agreement reached

Mikel Arteta and Arsenal are hoping to pull off something special

Arsenal could receive a huge boost to their transfer budget ahead of the summer window if they win the Champions League this season, with bookmakers largely agreeing they are now favourites for the competition. Mikel Arteta’s side secured a 3-1 win on aggregate over Bayer Leverkusen in the last-16 of the competition this week.

The Gunners had scraped a 1-1 draw at the BayArena in the first leg before seeing out a relatively comfortable 2-0 victory at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday. Arteta will now turn his attention to facing Sporting CP in the Champions League quarter-finals next month.

But even if their European campaign ends against Sporting, Arsenal have already been handsomely rewarded for their results in the competition this season. Like every other club in the European top-flight, the north Londoners were awarded £16.2m by UEFA just for taking part.

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Governing body UEFA offers £1.82m per victory in the league phase, so Arteta's side were granted an additional £14.6m, having won each of their eight games. There was a further £8.5m given out for finishing top of the table,

They also reward clubs that finish in the top eight and advance directly to the last 16, so Arsenal earned a further £9.6m for their efforts. Arteta had earned the club an eye-watering £48.9m in prize money before the knockout stages had even begun.

Securing a place in the quarter-finals recently added £10.9m to their purse. And they are expected to add to their huge total by beating Sporting across the two upcoming legs.

If Arsenal can reach the semi-final and final, they will earn an extra £13m and £16.1m, respectively. The Champions League winners are then awarded a further £5.7m, with bookmakers seemingly in agreement that the Gunners are currently favourites to manage despite never having won the competition previously.

Sky Bet, Paddy Power and Betfair all agree Arsenal are favourites with all three currently pricing the Gunners at 9/4 to go all the way, helped by the fact the hardest fixture they will possibly play before the final is against Barcelona. That view has been supported by various pundits, including Jamie Carragher, who has described Arsenal as the tournament favourites given they are on the more favourable side of the draw.

He said: "I wouldn’t say I enjoy watching Arsenal play but you have to respect the results they’re getting. They’ve found a way to stay in games and that’s what matters in the Champions League. If they keep doing that, they could be the English team that goes the furthest in the competition. I wouldn’t rule out a semi-final — or even more."

Speaking on The Rest is Football, it appears fellow pundit Micah Richards also agrees. He said: "They’re top of the Premier League, and I think Arsenal are the favorites for the Champions League because I think it will suit them more than the domestic games.

"In the Champions League the games might get a little bit more stretched whereas in the Premier League everyone is going to that low block against them."

Lifting the trophy would provide a £94.6m windfall come May. A portion of that money would then likely be allocated to sporting director Andrea Berta’s summer transfer budget.

That would allow Arteta to improve his already outstanding squad even further, giving them the edge to defend any titles they may win this season next term.