Arsenal are facing a battle with Newcastle United and Everton over a deal to sign £40m-rated Lyon midfielder Bruno Guimaraes, according to the Evening Standard.
Mikel Arteta is building a talented young squad at the Emirates Stadium with the Young Guns enjoying an excellent run of form lately that has seen them climb into the top four of the Premier League table.
The Spanish coach is looking to further strengthen his ranks over the coming year with a new central midfielder seen as a priority and the Evening Standard says Guimaraes remains a prime transfer target for the north Londoners.
The 24-year-old has long been linked with a move to Arsenal and the Gunners have kept a close eye on his progress in Ligue 1 having initially been alerted to his potential at former club Athletico Paranaense.
Arteta is still keen on luring Guimaraes to the English capital but Arsenal will face stiff competition for his signature as the newspaper says Newcastle and Everton are also showing a keen interest in landing the midfielder.
Lyon are determined to keep hold of Guimaraes this month but there is a feeling he’ll eventually move on in the summer with the Evening Standard suggesting a deal will cost around £40m.
Xhaka replacement?
That would represent a decent profit for Lyon given they paid just £17m to sign the player in January 2020 – although the report suggests former club Athletico Paranaense will be due 20% of any transfer fee.
Guimaraes has developed into one of the most highly rated midfielders in French football since joining Lyon so he’d be a terrific addition to Arsenal’s squad if they could win the race for his signature.
Midfield is an area some fans feel Arsenal could improve upon. Thomas Partey has only recently started to show his best form since arriving from Atletico Madrid while Granit Xhaka has always been a contentious player at the Emirates.
Xhaka has constantly been tipped to leave the club since being stripped of the captaincy following a public bust-up with the Emirates crowd in 2020 so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the 29-year-old depart at the end of the season.
Guimaraes could be viewed as a potential replacement and he’d be a big upgrade on the likes of Mohamed Elneny and Ainsley Maitland-Niles – who’s expected to seal a loan move to AS Roma this month.
