Arsenal have now held discussions to sign a £100m star, but there could be fierce competition from a number of rival Premier League clubs.
Gunners stepping up pursuit of new midfielder amid quadruple push
The Gunners are in line for a very exciting end to the season, and there is still a chance they could clinch the quadruple, after booking their place in the quarter-final of the Champions League courtesy of a 3-1 victory against Bayer Leverkusen on aggregate.
Mikel Arteta made it clear he's unwilling to let his side get ahead of themselves when asked about their quadruple chances, saying: "No. I do not use that phrase. I don't talk about it. I don't know what they talk about when I'm not there, but we all know the difficulty of every competition.
"We are changing from competition to competition every three days and so far we've done well so we need to continue to do that."
However, the manager has certainly built a formidable squad, and they are particularly strong in the middle of the park, with Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi receiving plenty of praise this season.
Rice-Zubimendi-Arsenal
Despite having Rice and Zubimendi at their disposal, the north Londoners remain keen on bringing in a new central midfielder this summer, and a Premier League star is on the shortlist.
Arsenal in talks to sign "fantastic" midfielder
According to a report from TEAMtalk, the agents of Sandro Tonali have been in contact with Arsenal about a summer move to the Emirates Stadium, but there could be competition for his signature, as Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea have also held talks.
Tonali's agents are now actively making moves to secure a summer exit from Newcastle United, with Eddie Howe's side sitting ninth in the Premier League table, but would-be suitors may have to stump up a whopping £100m to get a deal over the line.
The Gunners are said to have an 'active interest' in signing the Italian, but it is unclear whether they would be willing to shell out such a huge fee on a replacement for Christian Norgaard.
Arteta is personally a huge admirer of the Newcastle star, and it is no surprise, given the level of some of his performances for the Magpies, with Enzo Maresca lauding the maestro as "fantastic" last season.
The Italy international has remained an important player for Howe during the 2025-26 campaign, and he has created 26 chances in the Premier League, which is the second-highest number in the squad, behind Bruno Guimaraes.
declan-rice-arsenal Related
Arsenal could see £70m bid accepted to sign their next Declan Rice
Arsenal are already exploring their options in the transfer market ahead of the summe.
However, Arsenal's midfield is already stacked, with Norgaard finding game time hard to come by this season, which means it may be unnecessary to spend £100m on a new midfielder.