If there is one position that Arsenal needs to strengthen it is central defence and while most of the headlines have been focussed on wingers there are a few centre-halves that have been linked with a move to the Emirates.
Joachim Andersen
Remember him? Well, it seems he is set to sign for French Ligue 1 side Lyon according to Le’Equipe
Gary Cahill
He is available for free, but can you really see Arsenal signing him? I cannot, even this board will know that the fans will not be best pleased with an aged player from Chelsea who hardly played last season and anyway, seems that he is on his way to Aston Villa.
Djene Dakonam
Dakonam was mentioned by David Ornstein but his 35 Million euro release clause is a bit of a stretch and it has gone a little bit quiet where he is concerned.
Mario Hermoso
He has rejected a contract offer from Espanyol and is set to leave the La Liga side, however, competition is fierce with Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich reportedly interested and despite having a release clause of £40 Million he could be had for as little as £18 Million due to having just 12 months left on his contract.
Samuel Umtiti
Injury prone and very expensive but even so, he would certainly be welcomed but the Barcelona star is probably out of our reach financially with reports that the Spanish Champions want 60 Million Euros.
William Saliba
One of Unai Emery’s prime targets but his transfer is complicated by his club St Etienne wanting to loan him back for a year and now there are reports that Roma wants him.
Armando Izzo
Arsenal has reportedly been in talks with the 27-year-old’s agent and are ready to make a bid of £22.5 Million for the Torino defender but then again, that was the Sun that reported that.
Presnel Kimpembe
The versatile PSG defender can play both left-back and central defence and played under Emery when they were both together at the French Champions but there has been little about him recently despite earlier speculation.
Dan-Axel Zagadou
The 20-year-old Borussia Dortmund defender apparently wants to be reunited with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyand so claims German tabloid BILD and it is said that his agent is at work trying to get him a move to the Premier League.
There are some others that I didn’t feel were worth mentioning which is saying something considering some of the candidates above, as an example Tottenham’s Toby Alderweireld.
But the list above is enough to be getting on with and I must say it does make for depressing reading with the most likely to join us, William Saliba, probably unavailable for a year.
Hardly inspiring is it?