Arsenal are reportedly keen on a Real Madrid youngster as they look as if they’ll miss out on Jeremy Jacquet to Chelsea.
The Gunners have been interested in Rennes centre-back Jeremy Jacquet for several months, as they had scouted him, and were likely to make an approach in the summer. However, Chelsea are reportedly plotting a £56m bid to sign the Frenchman, and so it looks as though Arsenal will miss out on him.
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Mikel Arteta did say that the Gunners would be active in the transfer window, despite having one of the deepest squads in the Premier League, but, now that they look to miss out on Jacquet, they will have to turn their attention elsewhere.
Arsenal keen to sign Madrid star Valdepenas
One name who the Gunners could turn their attention to is Real Madrid defender Victor Valdepenas, as they have been scouting him for several months. According to the Sun, the Gunners want to add another young defender to their squad, as see Valdepenas as a viable candidate.
The 19-year-old recently made his debut for Real Madrid, coming on as a substitute against Alaves in a La Liga match in December. He mainly plays as a left-back, but can also feature as an agile centre-back, more similar to Riccardo Calafiori.
It is understood that Madrid values him very highly, but Arsenal could look to tempt the Spaniard to the Emirates, especially with the promise of Premier League titles and potential Champions League success.
Interest in Valdepenas could be bad news for Lewis-Skelly
If the Gunners are looking to bring in a young left-back, this could be bad news for Myles Lewis-Skelly, who has already been forced out of Arteta’s starting line-up by Calafiori.
However, recently, Arteta has prioritised playing Ben White at right-back and Jurrien Timber out of position at left-back over Lewis-Skelly in Calafiori’s absence.
Now the fact that Arsenal are eyeing a move for Valdepenas, could spell an even trickier route to first team football for Lewis-Skelly moving forward.
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