Arsenal open talks over deal for £30m star as Emery steps-up hunt for 2nd signing

Managers are working hard trying to strengthen their squads during the summer transfer window so we’ll bring you all the latest news and gossip from around the globe. Here, Arsenal are linked with Nabil Fekir…

Arsenal have opened preliminary talks with Lyon over a potential deal to sign Nabil Fekir as Unai Emery looks to continue his squad overhaul this summer, according to L’Equipe via the Metro.

The boss snapped-up Brazilian youngster Gabriel Martinelli on Tuesday but we need to bring in several further additions to revamp an ageing an unbalanced squad that missed out on the top four last season.

We’ve been linked with the likes of Wilfried Zaha and Ryan Fraser this summer but Fekir has emerged as a potential attacking target with the Mirror reporting recently that Arsenal have been offered the chance to sign the midfielder for just £30m.

Fekir came close to signing for Liverpool for £53m last summer and he’s been linked with a move to Arsenal in the past but it looks as though we’ve now renewed our interest as Emery looks to secure a cut-price deal.

The Metro are citing a report from L’Equipe that claims Arsenal have now opened initial talks with Lyon and the Ligue 1 outfit are keen to do business as Fekir has just one year left on his contract so they don’t want to risk losing him for nothing in 12 months time.

Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas recently confirmed they are ready to sell the 25-year-old if a suitable offer arrives. He’s quoted as saying by the Metro:

‘His preference is a departure. We are open to discussions, we leave the door ajar for Nabil but for the moment, there are no offers.’

Fekir is a huge talent so he’d be an exciting addition to the Arsenal squad if we could snap him up for just £30m as that would be an excellent deal in today’s market for a player of his quality.

However, a deal is still along way from completion as L’Equipe claim Arsenal want to offload Mesut Ozil and get his huge £350,000-a-week wage off the books before we can proceed with any deal for Fekir.

Emery is keen to sell Ozil following a disappointing campaign from the German superstar but we’re struggling to find any club who’re willing to take on his current salary so it could derail our pursuit of Fekir if the situation doesn’t change soon.

READ –> Arsenal transfer news

And we can’t wait around for too long as L’Equipe says AC Milan are also chasing the French international playmaker so let’s hope we can find a buyer for Ozil swiftly as it would be disappointing to miss out on Fekir.