Arsenal: Oh, so that’s why we didn’t sign Max Meyer

Arsenal looked to be frontrunners to land the free (?) services of Max Meyer, but that derailed really quick. We may now know why, though.

Anyone that was hanging around Pain in the Arsenal in the March-May range knew who my top transfer target was – Max Meyer. I have a not-so-secret fetish for FC Schalke and knowing that Meyer was going to leave, it was imperative that the Gunners scooped him up.

It was perfect, given that he played exactly what we needed him to play – defensive mid, with ball-winning abilities and a creative side to boot. He had everything we could have ever wanted in a pivot, and then some.

And at only 22-years-old, it was more than a bargain. It was a steal.

Related Story: Arsenal Complete 2017/18 Player Ratings

But then everything fell silent, and rumors of Meyer moving to Hoffenheim, Liverpool, or now France, started to emerge and just like that, nothing was said.

Recent report from Germany publication Bild may finally be shedding some light on why exactly the Gunners didn’t land the deal that looked like such an easy one to process.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

According to Bild, Meyer was demanding a £4m fee just to commit him future to a club, along with a £77,000 weekly wage.

These steep monetary demands warded off not only Arsenal, but Liverpool, Atletico Madrid, Fenerbahce and undoubtedly more.

There isn’t much that could talk me into letting go of Meyer being a Gooner, but excessive financial demands would be one. Because that always seems to go hand-in-hand with an inflated sense of self worth. There is nothing wrong with thinking highly of yourself and believing in what you’re worth, but from the sounds of the report, the Meyer side was rather uncompromising.

It’s not the fee that should be as deterring. Even though it definitely has its own deterring force. The primary deterrent here is the steep ego that the club would be dealing with. For a new manager that already has a lot of moving pieces to figure out, the last thing he needs is a potential diva, which is what Meyer was starting to look like.

After all, it’s hard to figure why such a demand would be so deterring, given that we are now spending £26m on Lucas Torreira. Clearly it went beyond the financial demands.

Next: Arsenal's End Of Season Player Rankings

I think we all had moved on from this rumor already anyway, but in case you needed that extra push, now you have it,