Arsenal hold talks with PSG target who’s also previously spoke with Arteta

Arsenal have held talks with a Paris-Saint Germain and Atletico Madrid target, who also personally spoke with manager Mikel Arteta last year.

The midfielders targeted by Arsenal this summer

The north Londoners are seeking a potential replacement for Thomas Partey, with the Ghanaian widely expected to depart once the transfer window reopens on June 14.

Arsenal are open to selling Partey amid interest from abroad, with the midfielder entering the final 12 months of his contract at Hale End and coming off the back of an injury-riddled season – where he mustered just 14 Premier League appearances.

Sporting director Edu Gaspar, who recently admitted he’s been working on summer transfers since January (Estadao via football.london), has been linked with many Partey alternatives for the engine room.

Newcastle United star Bruno Guimaraes, Everton’s Amadou Onana, Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi and Aston Villa’s Douglas Luiz all stand out as midfielders who Arsenal are targeting this summer, according to various reports in the last few months.

Most of the aforementioned names are likely to cost a fee well in excess of £50 million to prise away from their current clubs, and around double that amount in the case of Guimaraes. With Arsenal looking to sign a prolific new striker for Arteta’s forward line, Edu will have to weigh his next moves very carefully, as the north Londoners will only have so much to spend this summer.

A potential bargain could come in the form of Monaco midfielder Youssouf Fofana. The France international is out of contract next summer and reports claim he could cost as little as £26 million for any interested side.

Both Fofana and Arteta were spotted in conversation with one another at the Emirates last year, when Monaco played Arsenal in a friendly clash. Fabrizio Romano also claimed this week that Fofana is expected to leave Monaco this summer amid the growing clamour for his services.

“Youssouf Fofana is not even negotiating a new contract with Monaco and the expectation of those close to the player, and the expectation of Monaco is for Youssouf Fofana to leave the club this summer. So Youssouf Fofana can really leave the club,” said Romano on his YouTube channel.

“What’s going to happen? There is interest from Italy, there is interest from England, there is interest from Germany, so several clubs are keeping an eye on Fofana. There is movement on him, keep an eye on this player, it could be one of the surprises of the summer transfer window.”

Arsenal hold talks with Fofana over joining this summer

As per French newspaper L’Equipe, via GFFN, Arsenal have held talks with Fofana via his representatives, but they face competition from Paris-Saint Germain and Diego Simeone’s Atletico – who’ve done the same.

The “magnificent” 25-year-old made 32 appearances in Ligue 1 alone last term, racking up four goals and four assists for Monaco as a stalwart of their engine room.