Arsenal held opening talks with Stade Rennais FC over the transfer of Ismaila Sarr last week, after the 3-1 defeat to their opponents at Roazhon Park.

According to Goal France (via GFFN), Arsenal ‘held preliminary talks’ with Rennes over Sarr following the 3-1 defeat last Thursday. The Gunners have reportedly been tracking the 21-year-old for months, on the advice of Sven Mislintat. Despite the German’s departure, his former club are still very interested in signing Sarr.

Arsenal fans will be well aware of the winger by now, after he scored Rennes’ third goal in the first leg of their last-16 tie. It was his 10th goal of the season, to add to 11 assists he’s racked up in 38 appearances this campaign.

There are still doubts about the Senegal international though. His finishing can be inconsistent, he tends to lose possession a lot and his passing is similarly hit and miss. For such a young player contributing so many goals, that’s not necessarily a major problem, but it’s something to keep in mind.

Reports in January suggested Arsenal were willing to make a good offer to sign Sarr, and he’s been linked with a transfer since at least September. We’ll have to wait and see how genuine those links are.