F.C. Porto striker Radamel Falcao looks set to leave this summer, regardless of the uncertainty surrounding club manager Andre Villas-Boas. According to talkSPORT, Falcao has decided to leave the Portuguese club, with Chelsea and Arsenal being the most likely targets. Tottenham have also expressed interest, but the Colombian striker is thought to prefer a club that can offer Champions League football next season.

I have made no secret of my desire to see Falcao in the Red and White of Arsenal. His style of play would be a missing link for the Gunners, a striker with a one-track-mind to score goals. He can score with either foot, and his head, and his strike rate was a very impressive 38 goals in 42 games.

What’s most impressive is that of those 38 goals, 18 were in European competition, arguably a tougher proving ground than Portugal’s domestic league. And those 18 European goals came in just 16 appearances! In fact, since joining Porto in 2009, Falcao has tallied a tremendous 73 goals in just 85 appearances. Simply put, the man scores goals.

The one bit of sad news to this story is the likely signing of Andre Villas-Boas by Chelsea. Sky Sports has reported that Chelsea have met the Porto manager’s release clause, and he could soon be signed by the West London club.

If this does occur, Falcao is likely to be one of Villas-Boas’ top summer targets, and I believe Arsenal would have little chance of luring him away from following his manager to Chelsea. So, chins up, stay hopeful, and realize it would take a not-small miracle for Arsene to meet a £26m buy-out clause on anyone, and that we can probably file this one under the “cruel rumors made to ruin Arsenal fan’s summers” heading.

On the subject of thriftiness, The Daily Mail has revealed that it will likely take at least £12m for Arsenal to bring Christopher Samba to the Emirates. Blackburn are likely to demand this amount due to a clause included in the centerback’s original purchase from German club Hertha Berlin which states that Hertha is to receive 15% of any transfer fee Blackburn receives from selling the player. Arsenal were rumored to value Samba at around £10m.

I really hope that this doesn’t turn into another case of Arsene missing out on a player because he flat refused to budge on an offer. If he’s the one you want, Arsene, then for heaven’s sake, go get him!

Paying the extra 2 million will not blow the budget, although at that point it might be better to shell out a few more and bring Gary Cahill instead. Samba has expressed his interest in Arsenal, he fits the profile of everything we want in a central defender, so unless your trying to choose one between him and Cahill, I wouldn’t let a few extra quid slow you down.

As always, whether you agree with me or not, I invite you to let your thoughts be known in our newly-launched Arsenal Forum!