Arsenal have made a £5 million bid for William Gallas
By Myles Palmer
Arsenal HAVE made a bid for William Gallas, Chelsea's unsettled defender
Remarkably, William Gallas was born in Paris on August 17th 1977, the same day as his friend Thierry Henry was born in a different suburb of Paris.
They were at Clairefontaine, the national academy, together.
Gallas joined Caen in the Second Division while Henry, tipped for stardom by the Clairefointaine coaches, signed for Monaco.
Gallas's first choice this summer was AC Milan but now he wants to join Arsenal.
Suggestions that Chelsea could put Gallas in the reserves for a year are ridiculous.
That is not an option.It would make them look viciously authoritarian and would disrupt the morale of their squad.
Willy Gallas is very highly regarded by his teammates, as a footballer and as a man.They do not want to see their friend humiliated.
Clearly, Mourinho does not want to lose one of the world's most accomplished defenders. But teams evolve, players move on. Damien Duff has been sold to Newcastle, Eidur Gudjohnsen to Barcelona, and Hernan Crespo to Inter Milan.
Duff had a year left on his contract and was sold for £6 million.
Gallas, who is older than Duff, is worth about £5 million.
And that is what we believe Arsenal have bid for him. Between 7.5 and 8 million euros.
Under Uefa rules, Gallas can purchase the remaining year of his contract to secure his release.
Aug 20, 2006
