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Radamel Falcao latest: Manchester City bookies favourite but Arsenal also interested as Monaco put £20m loan fee on Colombian striker

Manchester City fell from 16/1 to 5/4

Saturday 30 August 2014 13:39 BST

Radamel Falcao (Getty Images)

Bookies have slashed the price on Radamel Falcao joining Manchester City, but the Monaco striker is still believed to favour a move to Real Madrid.

Falcao, 28, was priced at 16/1 early this morning but his City were installed as the bookies favourites with the current price at around 5/4.

Monaco, according to various reports, will ask for a £20m loan fee for the Colombian, who is desperate to leave Ligue 1 after just one injury hit season.

Falcao is believed to prefer a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid but Los Blancos have already spent big on Toni Kroos, Falcao's former Monaco team-mate James Rodriguez and goalkeeper Keylor Navas.

Carlo Ancelotti may not want to pay such a steep fee for a loan having committed Karim Benzema to a new contract earlier this summer.

How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

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1/10How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Wilfried Bony

The Swansea striker had an impressive first season in Wales scoring 16 goals in the Premier League and 25 in all competitions. He has the strength and pace to operate as a lone striker and is technically good enough to fit in at Arsenal. he is believed to want a move to a bigger club and Swansea previously said they wouldn't stand in his way, with an offer of around £16m reported to be enough.

How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Danny Welbeck

Arsene Wenger made arguably the worst mistake of his Arsenal career when he sold Robin van Persie to Manchester United. Will Old Trafford chiefs return the favour? Welbeck is way down the pecking order under Louis van Gaal and offers the type of versatility managers love. He enjoyed the best season of his career last year and could thrive if given a central role more often.

Getty Images

How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Radamel Falcao

The best attainable No 9 in European football, Radamel Falcao has been a target for Real Madrid all summer and Arsenal could beat them to the Monaco player’s signature. Although he missed most of the year – and the World Cup finals – with a knee ligament injury, Arsenal could sign the Colombian on loan, though they would not get much change from £20m in that deal.

GETTY IMAGES

How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Marco Reus

The German's release clause is a well known staple of this transfer window - Reus is available for a cut-price £20m next year. This could mean the versatile young star is available for a bit more now, with Borussia Dortmund perhaps keen to cash in. However recent history shows they are happy to keep their players to be stronger now. Robert Lewandowski stayed an extra season before moving on a free to Bayern Munich this summer.

GETTY IMAGES

How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Edinson Cavani

The Uruguayan was heavily linked with a move to Arsenal or Chelsea earlier this summer and his agent even said Cavani was interested in coming to England. He was reported to be unhappy at playing second fiddle to Zlatan Ibrahimovic but those fears seemed to have been allayed. He is truly world class and scored 25 goals last season, but he will not be cheap and with Giroud expected to be out before the turn of the year it may be a bit of a stretch to have both of these men in the squad.

Getty Images

How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Julian Draxler

Julian Draxler was the talk of the town in January when Arsenal made a reported £37m bid for the German. That mammoth bid, Draxler admitted, went to the 20-year-old's head and his form dipped - he scored just six goals in all competitions last year. But the youngster is still clearly talented and should find his form again, while it will not take anywhere near that previous price to seal a deal this time.

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How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Theo Walcott

Since Arsene Wenger first started playing Theo Walcott on the right pundits have opined that he will eventually move back into a central role. Now 25, no such move has taken place. Walcott had a great year in 2012-13 scoring 21 goals in all competitions but managed less than 20 appearances last term. He is due back in mid-September and could, finally, see a role as Arsenal's main man.

Martin Rickett/PA

How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Lukas Podolski

The popular German has been linked with a move to either Juventus or back to Germany but Arsene Wenger may now decide to put that move on hold. He is an excellent finisher and has a good scoring record in his two years at the club, with 28 goals from 69 matches. However, when he has played through the middle he has neither the pace nor the strength to really operate as a lone striker.

Reuters

How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Alexis Sanchez

Impressed for Barcelona when played as a 'false 9' last season, Sanchez was terrible at Goodison Park in a similar position and was hauled off after 45 minutes. It will take time for the little Chilean to get used to the physicality of the Premier League, but he has the technical ability to succeed. However, a role as a lone striker may be too much in the early stages of his Arsneal career - he should be given more time to settle in.

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How Arsenal could replace Olivier Giroud

Yaya Sanogo

Yet to score a goal for the club in 15 senior matches, Sanogo managed to bag four in a pre-season friendly against Monaco. The youngster is a gifted athlete but very raw technically, and it would be a mistake for Wenger to consider him adequate cover for Giroud.

AP

Should a deal to Real Madrid fail to materialise, City and Arsenal are both said to be ready to pounce.

However, Falcao also commands £200,000-a-week in wages meaning a total package could cost more than £30m with no guarantee that the Colombian would stay more than a year.

Arsenal are in need of a striker after Olivier Giroud was ruled out until at least December with an ankle injury, but Arsene Wenger on Friday said he could cover the striker from within his current squad.

"We have Yaya Sanogo, we have Alexis Sanchez, we have Theo Walcott, we have Lukas Podolski," he said in a press conference.

City already have a plethora of options up front with Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko, Stevan Jovetic and Alvaro Negredo - three of those scored more than 20 goals last season while the fourth, Jovetic, put in a man of the match display against Liverpool on Monday.

Negredo is currently injured and expected back in mid-September.

Falcao scored 11 goals in just 19 matches for Monaco last season after his £50m move from Atletico Madrid. In the previous four seasons for Atletico and Porto he scored an incredible 142 in 187 matches.

Falcao already has two in three matches in Ligue 1 this season.

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