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David Tully Jul 18th 2026
Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta has identified Real Sociedad defender Jon Martin as a summer transfer target, according to reports.
The Gunners are expected to reinforce the backline following the news that William Saliba faces an extended spell on the sidelines with a back injury.
Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa is seen as the priority, but The Sun claim that Martin is also regarded as an option if a deal for the England international proves to be too expensive.
Berta prefers to negotiate for multiple targets, and it appears he is working on transfers for both Konsa and Martin in view of purchasing one of them.
What do fans need to know about Martin?
The centre-back came through Real Sociedad’s youth ranks, and he made his senior debut for their C team against Utebo FC in the Spanish 4th tier back in January 2023.
Martin made his first appearance for the first team against Real Betis in May 2024, playing the final 25 minutes during a 2-0 win.
The 20-year-old has subsequently gone on to play 50 times for Real Sociedad, and he received his first cap for Spain in a friendly against Iraq last month. He played the opening hour of the 1-1 draw.
Martin was not included in Luis de la Fuente’s final 26-man squad for the World Cup, but he is very much a rising star.
Arsenal have a track record of buying talent from Real Sociedad
The Gunners could purchase a player from the Basque side for a third consecutive summer. Mikel Merino was signed in August 2024 for £31.6m.
Less than a year later, Martin Zubimendi was snapped up for a fee in the region of €65m (£55.8m), and both have since become integral parts of Mikel Arteta’s first team.
Martin is undoubtedly far less experienced than those two players, but he has a lot of potential and would be a useful squad option in the absence of Saliba.
David Tully
David Tully
David has worked as a football reporter for the last fifteen years. Having started as an intern at Snack Media, he then went on to become a freelancer, working on various different sites. At the start of 2023, he took up his current role as content writer for the Football News Network.