Transfer

Arsenal interested in Youri Tielemans

Arsenal still remain interested in Youri Tielemans, according to transfer insider Dean Jones…

What’s the word?

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT this week, the journalist said:

“We know that Arsenal have a genuine interest and they’ve got all of the background work done on him and they’ve even got their proposed terms set up for if they were to go ahead with this one.”

The Belgium international is thought to be available for around £25m, with Leicester City needing to sell before they can buy anyone to bolster Brendan Rodgers’ squad.

Should Arsenal sign Tielemans?

Arteta dream

Aside from another winger, further depth in the engine room is just what manager Mikel Arteta needs before the transfer deadline on September 1st as the north London giants are playing a risky game with their lack of squad depth.

Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey appear to be the Spaniard’s first-choice duo at the base of the engine room, with last season’s summer signing Albert Sambi Lokonga their only ‘true’ backup.

Martin Odegaard could drop deeper with the arrival of Fabio Vieira from Porto but that would be at the detriment to his creative exploits. Therefore, it makes a world of sense for Edu Gaspar and his side to line up a move for Tielemans.

Oleksandr Zinchenko can also feature there but his strongest games have come at left-back, which is where he started on the opening day against Crystal Palace.

The Foxes star, though, would be something of a dream signing for Arteta.

Think of the calibre of midfielder that he had at Manchester City as Pep Guardiola’s assistant. Ilkay Gundogan springs to mind as a comparable player, someone capable of influencing the game at either end of the pitch when you have Rodri for the anchorman role and Kevin De Bruyne as the creator.

Tielemans is capable of playing as a no.6 or no.8 and acts as a deep-lying playmaker, having once been dubbed the “creator” of Rodgers’ side by The Athletic’s Rob Tanner.

Also lauded as a “phenomenon” by ex-Sweden midfielder Par Zetterberg, the Belgian provided six goals and four assists from 29 league starts last season, where he also averaged 2.3 tackles and 1.8 shots per game as Leicester’s fifth-best performer, as per WhoScored figures.

This merely highlights his capability to win the ball back, drive forward and either look to find the right pass or get off an effort himself, making him a rather dangerous presence in one of the most important parts of the pitch.

Defensively, Arteta has Partey or Xhaka and in the attack, Odegaard, Vieira or Emile Smith Rowe will be the advanced option, so Tielemans could slot right in as that Gundogan-type figure instantly.

He cost the Midlands outfit a whopping £40m back in July 2019, so to land him at nearly half that price is certainly a bargain for Edu and he now must follow up all his groundwork with a formal offer.

It’s time to get this deal done before September 1st.

AND in other news, Enquiry made: Arsenal eyeing swoop for £50m “huge talent”, he’s clear of Pepe…

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