Reports are coming to us this afternoon that Rangers have submitted a £3M bid Arsenal for defender Auston Trusty, but the Emirates giants are holding out for closer to the £5M they value the USA international at.
Speaking on his future, Trusty wouldn’t be drawn directly on Rangers’ interest (which has just ignited again thankfully) but said thus about his current position:
“I’m not necessarily focused on any of that. I’m here (at Arsenal) now and I take it day by day and I’ll just go to training and do my job, and any opportunity, I’ve got to come here and do my job. It’s been a grind, you know? But I think no matter what, as a player, as a person throughout life, you have to back yourself and you have to back to your ability and believe in yourself. I did it the entire time, from Philadelphia to Colorado to now. I back myself and I believe in my play, I believe in my abilities and I believe in what I can do in the future. It just gets better and better, and you have to get more focused the higher you go. But it’s been awesome and it’s such a blessing. I’m so honoured to be in this position.”
In short, he wants to play football and cannot do that in London because he falls short of the level Mikel Arteta needs at the back for a goliath the size of Arsenal. He was excellent for Birmingham in the Championship but despite wanting him the Blues cannot afford him.
Rangers can. Work is back on for getting this deal done, and if Trusty can be secured, it would massively help Rangers’ defensive picture. He, Jose Cifuentes and Danilo would be the final pieces of Michael Beale’s Rangers jigsaw even if James Tavernier and the right remains a soft and vulnerable spot.
Off the back of the rise of former Leicester City youth kid Johnly Yfeko, Auston Trusty would mean Rangers are completely sorted for a leftie defender. We’d be very, very happy with the addition of the American for sure.
But there’s still a lot of work to do over it – we understand some club officials from both sides did meet recently to discuss this deal – Arsenal are keen to ship him to Glasgow, with Mikel Arteta still a big Rangers fan and always grateful for the start he got in his career at this club, ergo keen to do a favour for us, but of course equally he can’t sell Arsenal short and they are his priority now.
So hopefully a balance can be found and Trust sorted for a move to Rangers after all.