Abdoulaye Doucoure hinted at a summer transfer with a post on Twitter on Saturday morning, thanking the fans and the club for this season.

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Doucoure wrote that this “last game at The Vic is the best time to thank you fans and be grateful of what we achieved”. The whole message had a ‘farewell’ tone to it:

Although the message wasn’t explicit in telling supporters he’s going, Watford fans certainly seemed convinced that the message meant their midfield maestro is on the way out:

Doucoure has run the show for Watford at times this season, so it’s no surprise the fans don’t want to see him go. He’s strong on the ball, carries it well and helps out at both ends of the pitch.

He has seven goals and three assists from midfield this season, and many of them in big games as well. He scored against Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United, and assisted two against Chelsea as well. That means half of his goal contributions came against the big-six.

Arsenal are starting to run low on central midfielders, especially if Jack Wilshere and Santi Cazorla don’t renew their contracts. Francis Coquelin left earlier in the season, of course. Plus, Doucoure would add a bit more of a physical presence to the midfield.

Reports from earlier in the season suggest Arsenal would have to pay around £40m for the player. We’ll see if that’s accurate when the window opens in the coming weeks.

Click ‘Next’ for 6 more midfielders Arsenal could sign this summer

Danilo Pereira

• Age: 26
• Current club: FC Porto
• Contract until: 2022
• Market value: £21.6m

We already know from the Portuguese media’s regular reports that Arsenal have spent a lot of time watching Porto play lately. For the most part, they seem to agree that Danilo is one of the key targets of their scouting trips.

The Portugal international is having a fantastic season with Porto, so you can see why he’s drawing interest from top clubs.

Danilo’s main strength is his aerial ability. He stands at around 6’2″, and uses every inch to his advantage. As a result, he’s won 70.1% of his aerial duels this season.

He’s also very comfortable on the ball, completing 86.3% of his passes for Porto. Those are two attributes the Gunners could use in a defensive midfielder.

The only drawback at the moment is that he’s struggling with a couple of injuries. In January he suffered a calf strain, then in February he had a setback keeping him out until April. Unfortunately he then ruptured his Achilles tendon.

If he can get fit and stay fit, Arsenal’s scouts have seen enough of him by now to know whether he’s worth a bid this summer.

Adrien Rabiot

• Age: 23
• 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.

Mario Lemina

• Age: 24
• Current club: Southampton
• Contract until: 2022
• Market value: £13.5m

Arsenal followed Lemina before his move to Southampton last summer, and the midfielder said at the time that he was “flattered” by their interest. According to L’Equipe, the club still haven’t “dropped the case”.

The 24-year-old excels at tackling and winning aerial duels. He’s also strong in possession, with 88% pass accuracy for the season (89.8% last season), and he isn’t easy to knock off the ball.

Plus, he has the advantage of having played in the Premier League for a year, so he’ll need less time to adapt.

Another thing that could help Arsenal’s pursuit is if Southampton end up getting relegated.

It’s always more difficult to hold onto your best players if you go down, and many footballers have clauses to allow them to leave for less if you do.

The Saints are currently in the relegation zone, one point behind Swansea City with three games remaining.

Fabinho

• Age: 24
• Current club: Monaco
• Contract until: 2021
• Market value: £36m

Fabinho is another player who has been linked with Arsenal a fair amount in the past. The media reported that the club joined Atletico Madrid and Manchester United in following him last summer.

In the end though, Monaco had already sold a number of players for a large profit, so they were under no pressure to offload another.

Nonetheless, Fabinho is still young, and he’s having another great season with the French side. He’s scored seven goals and assisted five, despite largely playing as a defensive midfielder.

The Brazilian is strong in the tackle and in the air, and isn’t easy to knock off the ball. He can also play an accurate pass, and creates chances well when he gets up the pitch. He’s also versatile, having played at right-back before in the past.

He’d be well worth a bid this summer, but there’d probably be competition for his signature.

Steven N’Zonzi

• Age: 29
• Current club: Sevilla
• Contract until: 2020
• Market value: £27m

Earlier this year, N’Zonzi showed just what he’s capable of against English opposition, as he walked all over Manchester United’s midfield in a 2-1 win for Sevilla.

His passing was inch-perfect, as it so often is, and he has a major physical presence as well.

In January, reports suggested the 6’5″ defensive midfielder was Wenger’s number one target. Clearly this turned out not to be the case, but it still implies Arsenal were somewhat interested.

N’Zonzi also seemed fairly keen on a transfer throughout 2017. He asked to leave in the summer, then spent time away from the squad after a rift with the manager.

For now he’s focusing on his football again, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the rumours return in the coming window.

Idrissa Gueye

• Age: 28
• Current club: Everton
• Contract until: 2022
• Market value: £16.2m

Like Lemina and N’Zonzi, Gueye also has the advantage of Premier League experience. The Senegal international joined Everton in 2016, and played for Aston Villa before that so he’s spent a while in England now.

Gueye’s game is very much focused around defensive contributions.

His passing stats and goal contributions are relatively average, but he holds onto the ball very well, and consistently puts up high numbers in terms of tackling and interceptions. Plus he rarely loses focus in his defensive duties.

If Arsenal want to sign someone who is less of an all-rounder and more of a defensive midfield specialist, Gueye could be the right player to go for.

Then again, limited technical ability on the ball is why Francis Coquelin ended up leaving. So I’m not entirely sure that’s what they’re after.