Arsenal Transfer News Roundup: Gunners don't deserve fourth place, says Granit Xhaka; Konstantinos Mavropanos set to move permanently to VfB Stuttgart, and more - 17 May 2022

Arsenal fell further behind in the race for fourth place after suffering a 2-0 defeat at Newcastle United on Monday. The result leaves manager Mikel Arteta's men in fifth place, two points behind fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, with only one game to go.

Meanwhile, Granit Xhaka has said that the Gunners do not deserve to finish fourth in the Premier League. Elsewhere, on-loan Gunners defender Konstantinos Mavropanos is set to join VfB Stuttgart permanently.

On that note, here's a look at the key Arsenal transfer stories as on 17 May 2022:

Arsenal don't deserve fourth place, says Granit Xhaka

Granit Xhaka has said that Arsenal don't deserve to finish fourth in the Premier League after their disastrous performance against Newcastle. The Gunners failed to rise to the occasion and were undone by an inspired Magpies team.

After the defeat, Xhaka said that the players didn't follow Arteta's plans. He said to Sky Sports (as reported by TalkSport):

"It’s so difficult to find the right words after the game. We came here to show a different game, but from the first minute until the 90 minutes, we didn’t deserve to be on the pitch today. I don’t know. I can’t explain to you why (it was such a poor performance).

He continued:

"We didn’t do what the game plan was, not listening to the coach, doing our things, and when you do your things these games happen. What happened was a disaster performance, and (playing) like this, you don’t deserve the Champions League; you don’t even to deserve to play in the Europa League. It’s very hard to take at the moment, and I don’t know why we’re not doing what the coach is asking for us."

Xhaka lambasted his teammates for their performance on the night, saying:

"If someone isn’t ready for this game, stay at home. Simple as that. Age doesn’t matter. You can be 30, 35; you can be ten, you can be 18. If you’re not ready for that, you’re nervous, stay on the bench or stay at home – don’t come here."

He continued:

“We need people to have the balls – sorry to say that – to come here and to play because we knew this was maybe one of the most important games for us, but to perform like this is not acceptable. Very, very sad for us. I’m very, very disappointed. and I feel very sorry for the people who came here to support us. I feel very, very sorry for Arsenal supporters. This is not the way we wanted to go, and I can only say sorry to them."

Konstantinos Mavropanos set to move permanently to VfB Stuttgart

VfB Stuttgart are all set to tie Konstantinos Mavropanos down to a permanent deal, according to The Hard Tackle via The Athletic. The Greek centre-back is currently on a two-year loan from Arsenal at the Bundesliga side. Stuttgart have a £4.5 million clause to sign him permanently.

However, the clause can only be activated if they escape relegation. Now that their stay in the Bundesliga has been confirmed, Stuttgart are ready to exercise the option. Mavropanos has played a part in the club's survival, and now Stuttgart are eager to extend his stay.

Gunners close to completing Aaron Hickey move

Arsenal are close to completing a move for Aaron Hickey, according to Caught Offside via Calciomercato. Arteta is on the lookout for an able backup to Kieran Tierney, who has had an injury-plagued campaign. He does have Nuno Tavares and Cedric Soares in his roster, but both have struggled to impress.

Hickey has emerged as an option and could be a fine deputy to Tierney. He has gone from strength to strength since moving to Italy in 2020. The Gunners have agreed a deal with Bologna for the 19-year-old, with the player likely to cost €23-24 million. He has scored five goals this season.