David Ornstein has revealed that Arsenal will be looking to add a new left-back to the ranks this summer, and the reasons why both Ryan Bertrand and Patrick Van Aanholt were overlooked.
The pair were both amongst Arsenal rumours claiming to be on our shortlist to join the club last month, having supposedly been available for a reasonable price thanks to the fact that their contracts both end this summer.
David Ornstein insists that our interest was never serious however, despite the strong reports, with Mikel Arteta believing he had adequate cover within the club already.
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The journalist moved onto reveal the club’s forward-thinking plan for the position in his column at The Athletic, and are keen to bring in a younger player with the potential to earn the first-team role from Kieran Tierney, in hope that the Scot can help to develop his younger counterpart.
There is a clear belief that the former Celtic defender is in the top tier of left-backs, and should he be able to pass some of his talent onto the younger generation could only be a blessing.
The report doesn’t name any targets with the criteria however, but one player I would love to see come in as Tierney’s understudy would be Aaron Hickey.
The 18 year-old recently made the move from Scotland to Serie A, supposedly rejecting the advances of Bayern Munich to join Bologna instead.
Hickey has picked up 10 league appearances since making the switch, despite being hampered by Coronavirus, and appears to be a player with huge potential.
Would Arsenal be better off adding an experienced option who was more willing to sit on the bench, than a young hopeful who could grow disgruntled with a lack of playing time?
Patrick