Myles Lewis-Skelly is reportedly 'well talked about' at Real Madrid, who have the Arsenal talent pinned for a free transfer when his contract expires in the summer of 2026.
On top of fixing any arrivals ahead of next season, the Gunners' sporting director Andrea Berta has inherited six contract conundrums to solve looking ahead 12 months.
Amongst those is Lewis-Skelly, the breakthrough star of Mikel Arteta's team in the 2024/25 campaign, though the 18-year-old has limited time at the Emirates Stadium as things stand.
Links of a free switch to Real once his deal expires next year may not be new, but it will be worrying to see them discussed at such a frequency.
The latest, from Marca, states Real are 'in a position to confirm that the tactics are already in place for the incorporation of a player free of commitment and who will withstand his club's attacks ahead of the 26/27 season'.
Lewis-Skelly is one younger star on the radar, with Fabrizio Romano going as far to claim the Spanish club have already made contact to ask for relevant information.
This is becoming a key strategy of the La Liga giants, with Trent Alexander-Arnold, Kylian Mbappe, Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba all unable to resist approaches before leaving their clubs for free in recent years.
Alexander-Arnold's move from Liverpool was only made official this month and with Jude Bellingham already at the Santiago Bernabeu, a growing English cohort in Madrid may be another worry for Arsenal hoping to keep their prized talent.
Time is of the essence as Real are a foreign club, so will be eligible to enter official contract talks with Lewis-Skelly and his representatives.
The Mirror have already reported that the Gunners are primed to try and fend off such interest, however, with Berta working 'extremely hard' to prepare contract renewal offers for four of Arsenal's players.
Lewis-Skelly is part of that priority group, as is fellow defender William Saliba with a current contract due to expire in two years' time.
He too has been linked with a move to Madrid but so far attempts are said to have been unsuccessful. The Frenchman will be 25 this time next year, when Real will be drawing up their plans for 2027, and he could feature as Lewis-Skelly does now if his future remains unresolved.