Arsenal ready to break bank if Fabregas goes

Arsenal are ready to break their transfer record with £20 million moves for Valencia’s Juan Mata and Villarreal’s Santi Cazorla if the sale of captain Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona finally goes through this week, British tabloid the 'Daily Mail reported.

Barca vice-president Josep Maria Bartomeu is in London this weekend and wants to meet Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis to submit a new £35 million offer to Arsenal and drive through the deal.

Fabregas missed the friendly win against FC Cologne in Germany and Arsenal have cited an ongoing hamstring injury, with insiders denying any suggestion that Fabregas is effectively on strike.

It seems all it will take for Fabregas to go is for Barcelona to match Arsenal’s £40 million valuation, but Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said: "I don’t want to talk about transfers openly because it’s a negotiation, but if we sell a player or buy a player we’ll tell the Press. The details of what’s happening during transfer talks, I don’t like to talk about."

With the forecast income from Fabregas plus a kitty of about £25 million, Arsenal are ready to spend serious money this summer, smashing their club record of £17.5 million for Andrey Arshavin in 2009, possibly by buying Mata, 23, a left-sided wide player, for  whom Valencia will demand £25 million.

Mata is Arsenal’s most expensive target along with Spain team-mate Cazorla, 26, who can play on either wing or centrally. Cazorla though is also being chased by Malaga.