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Arsenal plotting January swoop for Alejandro Grimaldo

By Ritayan Chatterjee on September 15, 2022

Arsenal are reportedly contemplating a January swoop for Benfica fullback Alejandro Grimaldo, as per the Italian outlet Calciomercatoweb.it.

The 26-year-old joined the Liga Portugal giants back in 2016 from Barcelona. The defender has showcased his talent during his time in the Portuguese capital, scoring 18 goals and registering 47 assists in 213 appearances in all competitions.

The report in Calciomercatoweb.it claims that Arsenal have enquired about Grimaldo in recent months. The Spaniard’s current deal with Roger Schmidt’s side will expire at the end of this season and therefore, Benfica could allow their star man’s departure in January for fear of losing him for free next summer.

The report further claims that the Gunners are set to face stiff competition from other European rivals for the 26-year-old’s signature as Juventus, Inter Milan, Barcelona and Manchester City are all lining up a move for the talented fullback.

Grimaldo to Arsenal

Grimaldo would be a magnificent acquisition for Arsenal. The full-back is very good going forward, comfortable with possession and can provide excellent services to the forward players. So, he would be an ideal option for Mikel Arteta’s system.

However, given that Arsenal already have Kieran Tierney and Oleksandr Zinchenko in their squad, it is a bit surprising to see the north London club are linked with a move for another left-back.

A report emerged this week that stated that Zinchenko is keen on playing in the middle of the park over the full-back position. The 25-year-old plays in midfield with his national team, however, he was never deployed there by his former boss Pep Guardiola and usually played as a left full-back at the Etihad Stadium. So, it was thought that Arteta had also bought him to play the left-back role.

However, the Spanish boss might be thinking about signing Grimaldo in order to deploy Zinchenko in the engine room. The Gunners needed reinforcements in midfield but failed to add more options in that department this summer, therefore, Arteta might be planning to use the Ukrainian in midfield to address that issue.

However, given that Zinchenko has settled down extremely well in the left-back position, it might not be a good idea to change his role. So, Arsenal should focus on signing a new midfielder over a full-back.

But, Grimaldo would be available in January and they might not want to give up on the opportunity of signing a talented player for a cut-price fee. So, the north London club should go for a new midfielder as well as the Spanish full-back in the winter transfer window.