Lyon have rejected an offer of €35m plus a player from Arsenal for Houssem Aouar, according to a report in France.

RMC report that Lyon rejected an Arsenal offer of €35m plus a player for their 22-year-old midfielder Houssem Aouar.

It’s possible this is the Gunners’ second bid for the player, after they reportedly offered €25m plus Matteo Guendouzi previously. However, GFFN claims it’s just a new report on the old offer.

If it is a second offer, it would suggest Arsenal think Lyon have some interest in Guendouzi. If the Ligue 1 club had informed them otherwise, there wouldn’t be much point going back with a similar bid again.

Regardless of whether it’s the first or second offer, it’s a substantial proposal from Arsenal. It’s not ideal that Lyon still aren’t even considering it, but clearly Mikel Arteta and Edu see Aouar as a serious target this summer.

That’s no real surprise, considering Aouar’s form last season and Arsenal’s current deficiencies. The midfielder scored nine goals and assisted 10 in all competitions in 2019/20, whilst Arsenal had no central midfielders come close to either of those tallies.

Joe Willock was the top scorer with five goals, whilst Matteo Guendouzi and Mesut Özil shared the top assist tally with three each. Nowhere near enough for a team challenging closer to the top of the table.

Adding someone who performed so well in the middle playing in the Champions League knockout stages against some of the best teams in Europe (Juventus, Manchester City and Bayern) would certainly help.