Mikel Arteta and Luis Enrique (Photo by Justin Setterfield, Franco Arland/Getty Images)
Arsenal are reportedly eyeing up a potential transfer raid on their recent Champions League final opponents Paris Saint-Germain.
The Gunners lost on penalties to PSG in Budapest last week, and now it looks like Mikel Arteta is looking to raid the Ligue 1 giants for promising youngster Emmanuel Mbemba, according to Le Parisien.
The report states that Arsenal have already presented their project to Mbemba, while fellow Ligue 1 side Paris FC are also mentioned as suitors for him.
Mbemba is a highly-regarded young left-back who captains PSG’s Under-18s, and it seems like he has a big future ahead of him.
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Arsenal will now hope to convince him to swap Paris for London for the next phase of his development, and one imagines that could be a tempting offer.
Emmanuel Mbemba to leave PSG for transfer to Arsenal?
PSG have often turned to big-money signings to launch their project, and that will likely continue to make it hard for homegrown talents like Mbemba to break into the first-team.
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Arsenal, meanwhile, might be a good option for the 18-year-old, who will perhaps look at William Saliba’s development and rise since moving to the Emirates Stadium at a young age.
Saliba had to wait a while before becoming a regular at Arsenal, but after three loan spells he eventually broke into Arteta’s side and is now one of the team’s most important players.
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One hurdle in Emmanuel Mbemba transfer saga
There is a complication with the Mbemba transfer, however, and that’s that he currently doesn’t quality for a work permit, according to Le Parisien’s report.
That means AFC might have to loan the player out before he can come and be part of their first-team, so this would very much be a signing for the long-term, rather than someone to come in and make an impact straight away.