Arsenal are said to be showing an interest in Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa after holding talks over a potential Tottenham transfer.
England's Ezri Konsa celebrates scoring his sides second goal with Declan Rice during the FIFA World Cup 2026 bronze final at the Miami Stadium.
Arsenal have been linked with a transfer interest in Ezri Konsa. (Image: Martin Rickett/PA Wire)
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Arsenal are reportedly reigniting their interest in Aston Villa and England defender Ezri Konsa. The Gunners were linked with the centre-back earlier in the window, seeing a bid rejected.
Konsa has been a key player for Villa since moving from Brentford in 2019. He played 48 times in all competitions last season, with the Midlands club winning the Europa League.
He was then a mainstay in Thomas Tuchel’s England starting line-up in this summer’s World Cup. The only game in the tournament he didn’t start was the 2-1 semi-final defeat vs Argentina.
BBC Sport reports that Arsenal are now ready to make a move for the 28-year-old, although they will need to improve their initial valuation if they wish to convince Villa to sell. The Gunners are keen to add to their defensive options following an injury to William Saliba.
Arsenal were said to originally not be willing to go above £30million for Konsa, whereas Villa value him at around £60million. If any of the clubs have since changed their stance is still to be seen. Mikel Arteta is keen to add to his defensive ranks, with Konsa identified as a target partly for his versatility at centre-back and right-back.
Konsa is not the only defender they are reportedly looking at, with the report also saying that Arsenal have held 'exploratory talks' over a move for Tottenham Hotspur captain Cristian Romero.
Despite the Argentine looking likely to leave Spurs this summer, they are unlikely to sanction a move that will allow him to join their north London rivals.
Cristian Romero during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Final football match between Spain and Argentina.
Arsenal are said to have held talks over a possible move for Cristian Romero. (Image: Jean Catuffe/Getty Images)
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That could leave Arsenal turning their attention back to Konsa. It’s not the first time that the Gunners have dealt with Villa during the current transfer window, with talks being held over a possible move for Morgan Rogers.
The midfielder eventually completed a £117million move to Chelsea, wth Arsenal not willing to go that high in their valuation of the player.
Speaking following the 3-2 friendly defeat against Borussia Dortmund at the weekend, Arteta said the club continues to work on incoming transfers. "Well, that's what we're trying to do," he stated.
"If we have the right player in the market to make us much better. We are very looking forward to that."
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