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Arsenal in talks to sign £20m midfielder as Emery eyes key signing

By on July 9, 2019

According to reports via TeamTalk, Arsenal have made contact with Southampton to discuss a potential deal for Mario Lemina with the Saints ready to cash-in at £20m.

Unai Emery is expected to be busy in the market over the next month as he looks to strengthen his squad after missing out on the top four last season and the Arsenal boss needs to sign a left-back, centre-back and a winger.

However, Emery is also in the market for another midfielder after Aaron Ramsey joined Juventus on a free transfer while Mohamed Elneny is being linked with a move away from the Emirates this summer.

It seems we’ve got a replacement in mind as TeamTalk are citing a report from the Daily Mail that claims Arsenal have now made contact with Southampton to discuss a potential deal to sign Mario Lemina after he was told he could leave the club.

The Gabon international has struggled with injuries since joining Southampton from Juventus for £18m two years ago and he was left behind while the rest of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s squad flew out to Austria for their pre-season tour on Monday.

It’s a sure sign the midfielder will be on the move this summer and it seems Arsenal have expressed their interest in a deal that would cost around £20m, according to TeamTalk.

However, we’ll face competition as the report says Manchester United and Leicester City have also held talks with Southampton over Lemina so it looks like there will be a three-way tussle for his signature.

I seem to recall Arsenal being linked with Lemina when he left Juventus in 2017 so our interest is long-standing but he’s not exactly set the Premier League alight since arriving two years ago.

His injury problems should also be a concern as the last thing we need is another player who spends months on the treatment table and he only managed to make 23 appearances in all competitions last season.

However, if we can win the race for his signature and keep him fit then Lemina could be a shrewd signing as he has bags of talent and god knows we could do with a defensive midfielder to protect the back four.

If we did sign Lemina, then he’d become our second signing of the summer following the arrival of Gabriel Martinelli – although reports suggest we’re also closing in on the signing of William Saliba from Saint-Etienne.