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Arsenal are reportedly ready to reignite their interest in Seria A star Manuel Locatelli.
THE LOWDOWN: FAILED ATTEMPTS
Arsenal went after numerous midfielders in the summer, as injuries took Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny out of the team. The Gunners went all out for Aston Villa’s Douglas Luiz on deadline day, but the Premier League club rejected all the bids.
Perennial target Youri Tielemans, who has refused to extend his deal at Leicester City, was not approached because of the Foxes’ hike in asking price, which made the Gunners opt to wait for the Belgian to be available for free in January.
In addition, Brazilian youngster Danilo also came into the conversation before the transfer window was shut, but an agreement could not be reached between the two clubs. In the end, no midfielder was added to the squad, as the Gunners remain short in that area and there is a huge possibility that one of the missed targets will come to the Emirates in January.
THE LATEST: ITALIAN TARGET
As per Calciomercato Web, Arsenal have renewed their interest in Juventus midfielder Manuel Locatelli.
The midfield is one important area in the Arsenal team that has not been adequately addressed by Mikel Arteta since coming on board. The former Manchester City assistant manager has a duty now to improve the quality of the midfielders by making at least a new signing by January.
Granit Xhaka has just found his form back, Thomas Partey is injury prone, while Mohamed Elneny and Albert Sambi Lokonga are just good as back-ups and not starters in this team. With all of that in mind, the interest in Locatelli makes a whole lot of sense as he fits the recruitment profile of Arsenal.
Locatelli offers both competition and depth to Arsenal’s midfield. He is valued at £31m by Transfermarkt, so Arsenal should be able to convince him to make the switch, as the fee isn’t on the high side.
