Arsenal are now ensuring that they are being constantly updated on a new defender's situation as they look to exploit a potential contract standoff, according to a fresh report.
Arsenal's defence continues evolving
Arsenal continue to upgrade in defence as they look for a first Premier League title under Mikel Arteta. The arrival of Oleksandr Zinchenko from Manchester City ousted Kieran Tierney, before the Ukrainian himself was sidelined by the arrivals of first Jurrien Timber and then Riccardo Calafiori, both of whom can play across the backline.
Now, it has emerged that Kieran Tierney will be leaving the club on a free transfer when his contract expires at the end of the season, and Zinchenko could well follow him out of the door with the left-back having started just two Premier League games this season.
Arsenal-White-Timber-Arteta Related
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Arsenal could be about to make a huge statement signing in January.
And though Arsenal fans will be more keen to see attacking reinforcements arrive at the club as opposed to more defenders, especially following the latest injury news to both Bukayo Saka and Raheem Sterling, it is clear that Arteta values his defensive lynchpins as far more important to get right than his attacking ones, having signed at least one defender in every summer transfer window since his arrival at the club.
Defenders signed by Mikel Arteta at Arsenal
Riccardo Calafiori
Jurrien Timber
Jakub Kiwior
Ben White
Takehiro Tomiyasu
Oleksandr Zinchenko
Gabriel
Nuno Tavares
Cedric Soares
Pablo Mari
Now, reports suggest that he is ready to follow up on yet another defender, with the club being consistently updated on his potential availability.
Arsenal keeping tabs on elite defender
That comes according to a report from The Boot Room, who claim that Arsenal are now demanding to be kept in the loop over the future of French international defender Theo Hernandez. The rampaging fullback is Milan's highest ever scoring defender but has struggled since the arrival of Paulo Fonseca over the summer.
He has started 10 Serie A games but was dropped for their clash with Genoa and began their win over Hellas Verona on the bench. As it stands, the Frenchman's £81,000 a week deal at San Siro expires in 2026, and Milan Live claim that "to date there has been no significant progress on his renewal", meaning that "everything suggests that the left back could be sold in the next transfer window".
Hernandez-France-Israel
Dubbed "brilliant" by CBS reporter Marco Messina on X, the defender will have no shortage of suitors should he depart Milan, and the Boot Room claim that Arsenal "are being constantly notified" about a potential move.
The Gunners have admired the defender "for several years", and his fall out with Paulo Fonseca has left them weighing up a potential move, though Chelsea, Manchester City and Bayern Munich are also named as potential suitors.
Hernandez would be a major upgrade on Zinchenko in an offensive sense, with the Frenchman having managed two goals and two assists already this season from fullback, adding to his nine goals and assists in last season's Serie A campaign. No price tag is mentioned, but any move to sign the Frenchman would almost certainly be costly, with the fullback among the best in the world in his position.
While Milan may not wish to sell, they could be forced to allow him to leave if they cannot make progress on a new deal, and Arsenal now stand to profit in a major way.