Arsenal launch move to sign 27-y/o Barcelona target as Arteta begins summer overhaul

Arsenal have made their move to sign Paris Saint-Germain full-back Layvin Kurzawa on a free transfer as Mikel Arteta looks to rebuild his squad this summer, according to the Mirror.

It’s been a difficult 2019/20 campaign at the Emirates Stadium with the club currently languishing way down in ninth position in the Premier League table while we were dumped out of the Europa League by Olympiacos.

Arteta knows the squad needs to be strengthened in several areas and the Mirror says the Arsenal boss is eyeing Valencia midfielder Carlos Soler while William Saliba will arrive from Saint-Etienne to tighten things up at centre-back.

However, Arteta is also on the look-out for a new full-back this summer and the newspaper says Arsenal have made a move to sign Kurzawa on a free transfer when his contract at Paris Saint-Germain expires.

The French international was strongly linked with a move to Arsenal back in January with France Football reporting at the time that talks were held with the left-back over a five-year contract ahead of a move to north London at the end of the season.

Kurzawa has attracted interest from several other top European clubs with the Mirror claiming that Napoli and Barcelona are tracking him, however, it looks like Arsenal have stolen a march on their rivals by making a formal move for the 27-year-old.

And the Gunners have received a boost in their attempts to get a deal done as the Mirror cites a report from the newspaper version of Spanish outlet Sport that suggests Kurzawa’s agent Kia Joorabchian has made it clear to Barcelona they won’t wait around for them to make an official offer.

Kurzawa earned a reputation as one of the best attacking full-backs in French football during his time at Monaco before earning a £22m move to PSG in 2015 while he’s also got 13 caps for the French national team to his name.

The defender has helped PSG win 3 Ligue 1 titles and 8 domestic cups during his time at the Parc des Princes but he’s fallen out-of-favour under Thomas Tuchel and is now set for a move this summer after rejecting a new contract at PSG.

If Arsenal are successful in luring Kurzawa to the Emirates it would cast doubts over the future of Sead Kolasinac as the Bosnian international may be deemed surplus to requirements with Kieran Tierney expected to stay following a frustrating first season at Arsenal.