via Reuters
Arsenal could make an approach for Aston Villa star Ezri Konsa, according to a fresh claim. The Gunners still have work to do in the summer window, with Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis their only major signings the date, and the latter replaced Leandro Trossard.
Mikel Arteta is hell-bent on signing a new left-winger, with an elite attacker wanted to fill that role, but they could yet strengthen in other areas. One area that could still be addressed is the centre-back position amid concerns over William Saliba and his back injury coming out of the World Cup. Saliba is set to miss another two weeks, but there may be some concern given the lingering nature of back injuries.
Arsenal do have plenty of defensive competition, but reports now claim they want another, perhaps suggesting a centre-back exit this summer.
Photo courtesy of Reuters.
Fabrizio Romano has claimed Villa and England star Konsa could now be of interest. He said on his YouTube channel: "The other name I would keep in the shortlist for Arsenal remains Ezri Konsa because the Aston Villa defender is very appreciated. Arsenal are considering the player. Arsenal have had the player on their shortlist for some time and so for sure Konsa is a name to keep in mind when we talk about an Arsenal defender."
Villa have already had to replace two key players this summer in Youri Tielemans and Morgan Rogers, so they may well be reluctant to lose a key defender in Konsa. But Arsenal are a draw due to their ability to compete for titles, and that showed in the Bruno Guimaraes transfer this summer.
Villa are competing in the Champions League this season, and it would be tricky to replace Konsa late in the window. An asking price of £60million has been mentioned in reports.
Konsa's WhoScored stats for 2025/26 Premier League campaign
Appearances: 34
Tackles: 0.6 per game
Interceptions: 0.7 per game
Clearances; 3.6 per game
Blocks: 0.9 per game
Konsa's rave review from teammate Watkins
David Butler / IMAGN Images via Reuters
Konsa's Villa teammate Ollie Watkins has said of the defender: "I think Ezri is just so underrated. It’s mad how under the radar he goes and for so many years he has been. I think he’s one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League. People don’t look at that straight away. I don’t know if it’s profile around Villa and stuff like that. People always look at the top teams. But defensively, he hardly puts a foot wrong.
"I think one vs one, he played there. I remember we played against Brazil and Vinicius Junior couldn’t get past there. He’s so solid. He can play right-back and obviously his main position is centre-back. But if he does play there, I’m fully confident he can bring more than a job. He can go and really excel there and make it really tough for top-class wingers to get past him."
Konsa would add serious depth to the Arsenal back line, but his arrival will surely mean an exit at the back, with Arteta having collected centre-backs over recent years, albeit it many of them can also play as full-backs.