No Arsenal farewell for Emile Smith-Rowe as Fulham put forth club record transfer fee

Premier League club Arsenal’s midfielder Emile Smith-Rowe was on the bench for their pre-season fixture against rival London club Bournemouth. The United Kingdom-born player wasn’t given a chance to say goodbye to the Gunners’ supporters as he wasn’t brought on by manager Mikel Arteta for even a substitute appearance.

Meanwhile, as per ‘The Sun’, Fulham has agreed on a club-record transfer fee of about £37 million to bring in Smith-Rowe from Arsenal. The Cottagers have been trying to land the attacking midfielder lately in this transfer window, and finally, their efforts have paid dividends. Emile Smith-Rowe is himself keen on the move as he is termed to be excited by the prospect of more first-team football. He will be looking to revive his Premier League career with Fulham.

Mikel Arteta also dwelled upon his decision to not bring in Smith-Rowe for the game against Bournemouth. “There are things happening in the background at the moment. We decided the best thing to do was to keep him away from the game today”, the Gunners’ manager reportedly asserted. Now all eyes will be on Marco Silva come the next season, and how he utilizes Emile Smith-Rowe in his Fulham side.

With Fulham’s Andreas Pereira being linked to a move away from the club as Chelsea are termed to be interested in the former Man United star, a spot could well open for Smith-Rowe in the attacking midfield area to make an impact at the Craven Cottage.