Arsenal are being linked with a young midfielderplaceholder image
Arsenal are being linked with a young midfielder | Getty Images
Arsenal are being linked with a move for a Dutch talent ahead of the summer.
Arsenal are said to be pushing for a move to sign a defender who has caught the eye of a number of European clubs. The Gunners had a very quiet winter transfer window, deciding not to strengthen further despite the loss of Mikel Merino to injury for the rest of the season.
But that was no surprise given Arsenal spent more than £200million in the summer to build a squad that was ready to cope with injuries, unlike the squad the Gunners had last season.
Arsenal could do with pivoting their focus to younger players who cost less over the coming years, with their spending efforts unsustainable under the current spending rules. The Gunners have spent hundreds of millions to build this squad, but they may have to take a more careful approach going forward.
The best way to do that is by signing players with big potential at a younger age to avoid paying the huge sums of money often demanded for polished players. One player Arsenal could look to sign is AZ Alkmaar starlet Kees Smit, who has been a regular for the Dutch side at 20 years of age.
The central midfielder is able to play forward and back, but he is usually an out-and-out midfielder. In his 31 appearances across all competitions, Smit has scored three times and provided five assists. He is a four-time Netherlands under-21s international.
Smit has been described as a ‘superior’ player by Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo who once wrote: “The AZ Alkmaar player is one of the biggest promises in Dutch football. (…) “He has a superior individual technical quality, which makes him stand out in dribbling and giving long passes. But besides the fact that he has a very nice feeling in his foot, his physical performances make him stand out against footballers who are twice his age.”
According to CaughtOffside, Arsenal and Liverpool are now ‘laying the groundwork’ over a possible summer deal, with Manchester United and Real Madrid having also been linked in the past. Smit is currently valued at £18.9million by Transfermarkt, and that value may well continue to rise given his age and form.
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