Arsenal made a late attempt to sign Bayern Munich midfielder Leon Goretzka before the winter transfer deadline, according to Alex Crooke.
Arsenal were dealt a major setback after reports confirmed that Mikel Merino will be sidelined for ‘a number of weeks’. With a demanding stretch of matches ahead across league and European fronts, the timing could hardly be worse, as Arteta’s team will need their strongest options available to navigate a decisive period of the campaign.
With Merino injured, the Gunners explored moves for viable midfield targets, including Sandro Tonali, with reports via Football Talk revealing that Arsenal had offered a five-year deal and a pay rise to convince the Italian international to join them.
With Newcastle United firmly rebuffing Arsenal’s offer, it appears the Gunners did not relent in their efforts as they went on to explore other available options in the market.
According to Crooke, one of the options Arsenal looked at was Goretzka as a possible option to step in for the injured Merino.
The journalist claims that the North London club asked for information regarding the German international’s availability before the winter transfer deadline.
Late attempt
With the move not materialising, the Gunners are satisfied with the strength of their squad and will be heading into the remaining run of fixtures for the season with their available midfield options, Crooke adds.
Although Arsenal have Martin Zubimendi, Declan Rice and Christian Nørgaard as central midfield options, competing on all fronts, both in domestic and European competitions, means Arteta could make use of an additional option to prevent injuries and fatigue.
In his pre-Chelsea press conference ahead of the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg clash, the Gunners manager said that the club ‘need to find solutions’ after Merino’s injury.
He said: ‘Of course. I mean, when you lose a big player like this in the squad with four months to go and all the competitions to play for, you need to look.
‘We need to do everything that we possibly can to see if we have a player who is available. And if we don’t, we keep what we have.’
Goretzka is set to become a free agent when his contract at the Allianz Arena runs out at the end of the season, so it’ll be interesting to see if Arsenal will return next summer to sign him.
