Arsenal are planning a move for Edmond Tapsoba of Bayer Leverkusen this summer, according to a report.

Gianluigi Longari of FootballTransfers reports that Arsenal are planning to sign a new centre-back before the end of the summer transfer window.

The Gunners had initially planned to sign Lisandro Martinez, who would’ve provided cover at left-back and centre-back. Instead, they now look set to bring in Oleksandr Zinchenko, who is an option at left-back and in midfield, but not at centre-back.

The move for Tapsoba wouldn’t come cheap, though. Leverkusen reportedly value him at between €40m and €50m.

The German side are looking to double their money versus what they signed him for in 2020.

Longari reported last summer that Arsenal had made a bid for Tapsoba, but it was obviously unsuccessful. At the time, Leverkusen wanted as much as €60m.

The lowering of their valuation could help to revive a deal, but it’s surprising to hear that centre-back is a priority.

Arsenal already have Ben White, Gabriel Magalhaes, and William Saliba fighting for two starting roles, with other options like Rob Holding and Pablo Mari, and full-backs capable of playing at centre-back like Takehiro Tomiyasu and Kieran Tierney.

Perhaps another incoming could depend on outgoings, which will itself likely depends on how the remainder of pre-season goes. It’s one to keep an eye on.