€35m rated star misses training ahead of potential Arsenal move

Ricardo Rodriguez has been tipped to become our second signing of the summer (via the Mirror), and the VfL Wolfsburg star has dropped a massive hint that he could be making the switch to Arsenal. The Swiss international missed training with the national side the other day, with his absence definitely a little suspicious.

Ricardo Rodriguez and Arsenal's Granit Xhaka on international duty

Swiss outlet SRF revealed that Rodriguez was one of two absentees from training, but unlike Yann Sommer – who was ill – the left-back was missing due to “unspecified reasons”. Often when a player is pulled out of training, a game or an event unexpectedly it’s a hint about an imminent transfer; with Rodriguez potentially involved in transfer talks, in the midst of agreeing personal terms, or even having a medical for all we know.

The Mirror’s report suggests that Unai Emery is more than willing to activate Rodriguez’s £19m release clause, with Wolfsburg then helpless to prevent the 23-year-old from leaving. He would then join his friend and international teammate Granit Xhaka at Arsenal, with his presence no doubt a huge draw ahead of the potential switch.

Obviously this is all speculation, and until we hear something more concrete we can’t know anything for sure. It seems very strange that in the midst of all this transfer speculation Rodriguez would simply miss training for no reason, so hopefully this really is a sign that he’s on his way to Arsenal.

While a left-back didn’t seem like a priority this summer, we really can’t turn down the chance to sign one of the most promising young left-backs in the game. Nacho Monreal isn’t getting any younger, and Maitland-Niles has repeatedly shown that he just isn’t good enough for Arsenal. If we could replace the youngster with Rodriguez it would give us fantastic strength in depth, and would show once again that when the right player comes along Unai Emery has that ruthless streak.