According to Mundo Deportivo, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has his sights on landing Real Madrid forward Marco Asensio in January.
The Spanish playmaker was regularly linked with a move away from Madrid last summer but he ended up staying beyond the transfer deadline. There remains continued speculation regarding his future and Mundo Deportivo report that Carlo Ancelotti’s side could sell him in January. Asensio’s contract expires in June 2023 and so far, he has shown no desire of penning a new deal.
Meanwhile, the Spanish outlet claim that manager Arteta wants the 26-year-old at Arsenal next month and he has instructed the board to land his signature. Madrid wanted £43 million for him last summer but the fee could now be substantially less as he will be a free-agent soon.
Bargain
Asensio has full control over his future at the moment. Madrid have failed to renew his contract and the Spaniard has the option of negotiating a pre-contract with a foreign club from January onwards. However, Madrid will be hoping to recoup a decent transfer fee by selling him this winter.
This is where Arsenal could take advantage. The London giants have had a good working relationship with Madrid in recent years. They signed Dani Ceballos and Martin Odegaard on temporary deals from them and ended up signing the latter permanently. The Norwegian is now the captain of the club.
Asensio has been starved of regular first-team football at Madrid this season and he has averaged only 28 minutes per appearance. There would be no guarantees of starts with Arsenal either but the Spaniard could see more game time as Arteta prefers to rotate his starting line-up for the Cup competitions.
The 26-year-old is very versatile and can play anywhere in the final third. Arteta will have Emile Smith Rowe back after his lengthy injury, but signing Asensio for a bargain price could be hard to turn down. Arsenal need more match-winners in the squad to compete with Manchester City for the league title.
