Sven Mislintat wants Arsenal to sign a defensive midfielder as one of four positions he’s looking to strengthen this summer according to reports, but who should he buy?
We recently covered reports of the four areas Arsenal’s new head of recruitment wants to strengthen over the summer, which you can check out here.
One of these areas was in midfield. Arsene Wenger sold Francis Coquelin in January, further depleting an already sparse array of options. Although Granit Xhaka and Mohamed Elneny are showing signs of improvement, Arsenal still need to invest in the summer.
So who could the club look to target?
1Adrien Rabiot
- Age: 22
- Current club: Paris Saint-Germain
- Contract until: 2019
- Market value: £40.5m
Rabiot blends physicality with technical ability, and is a long-term target of Arsene Wenger. Last year he told reporters he was going to talk about extending his contract in the summer, but a year later they still haven’t made any progress.
If that’s still the case when the window opens, with only a year left on his deal, Arsenal should make a move. It’s unlikely they’ll be able to match PSG’s wage offer, but it’s worth a shot anyway.
Rabiot is still young, but he already has a lot of experience under his belt. Plus he ticks all the boxes for what Arsenal need in a midfielder.
He has a physical presence, he doesn’t struggle to play out under pressure, he contributes defensively and gets involved in the goals from time to time as well.
For a more detailed report on Rabiot and what he could offer Arsenal, check out this article.