Joe Willock's Transfer to Besiktas: Arsenal Set for Cash Boost
Arsenal’s summer business may be about to receive an unexpected cash injection from a player who left north London three years ago.
Joe Willock, the academy graduate who departed the Emirates for Newcastle United in 2021, is closing in on a £17.4million switch to Besiktas. Buried in that original move to St James’ Park was a sell-on clause, and it now looks ready to bear fruit.
Arsenal agreed the clause when they sanctioned Willock’s permanent exit after his explosive loan spell on Tyneside. The fee back then was £25m, a sizeable sum for a midfielder still finding his feet, but one the Gunners quietly protected with a percentage of any future sale. The exact cut remains undisclosed, yet whatever the figure, it represents pure profit for Mikel Arteta’s side.
Newcastle have already turned down a £10m offer for Willock earlier in the window. Besiktas have returned with a package worth £17.4m and, with the 26-year-old now in the final 12 months of his contract, the pressure is on the Magpies to cash in.
In Turkey, the groundwork has been laid. ChronicleLive report that Willock’s agent has travelled to Istanbul for talks, with personal terms understood to be agreed. The deal now hinges on the clubs finalising the structure of the transfer, but the direction of travel is clear.
For Arsenal, it is a reward for joined-up thinking in the market.
Willock’s story is well known in north London. He broke into the first team in 2017 and marked his Premier League debut in memorable fashion, scoring against Newcastle at the Emirates in April 2018. Across four seasons he made 78 appearances for the club, scoring 11 goals and offering flashes of the penalty-box timing that later lit up his loan spell at St James’ Park.
That loan run – a remarkable streak that convinced Newcastle to pay big money in 2021 – has since given way to a steadier, more industrious role. Willock has racked up 168 appearances and 11 goals for the Magpies, but with his contract running down and Newcastle juggling their own financial considerations, a parting of ways now suits all parties.
It also arrives at a useful moment for Arsenal.
Arteta’s side, preparing for a Premier League title defence, have already been active. Christos Tzolis, Piero Hincapie, Illan Meslier and Bruno Guimaraes have all come through the door as the squad is reshaped for another tilt at the top.
Even so, the squad still has gaps. A new left-winger remains on the shopping list. Arsenal have been linked with Morgan Rogers and Vinicius Junior, only to watch Chelsea swoop for the England international and Real Madrid tie down their Brazilian star to fresh terms. That has forced the recruitment team to look again at their options in a market where elite wide forwards rarely come cheap.
Every extra pound counts in that chase. Money from the Willock clause will not transform the window on its own, but it can help bridge the gap on a fee, smooth the structure of a deal or free up room for an extra signing late on.
A few years ago, Joe Willock was the youngster trying to force his way into Arsenal’s midfield. Now, from hundreds of miles away and on the verge of a new chapter in Turkey, he could still help shape the squad that chases the title back at the Emirates.
