Arsenal are scouting yet another Bayer Leverkusen star in Edmond Tapsoba, as Granit Xhaka nears a transfer to the Bundesliga club.

Fabrizio Romano reports that Arsenal scouts have monitored Bayer Leverkusen centre-back Edmond Tapsoba in recent games, though the race for his signature remains open.

Tottenham Hotspur have also watched the defender in action, and Leverkusen will only sell for a “huge” bid.

This is far from the first time Arsenal have been linked with Tapsoba, with reports of a bid rejected in 2021, further interest in 2022, and reports in March that the Gunners were considering another move.

But perhaps now is as good a time as any for Arsenal to make another concrete attempt to sign the defender.

Arsenal do seem to be in the market for a right-footed centre-back, given the issues Mikel Arteta has faced in William Saliba’s absence.

The return of Champions League football gives the Gunners the funds and the appeal to get such a deal done ahead of the competition.

It’s hard to imagine Spurs’ managerless project appealing to potential signings more than Arsenal this summer.

On top of that, with Granit Xhaka seemingly on the way to Leverkusen imminently, Arsenal are building a relationship with the German club.

The Gunners have already been linked with a couple of Leverkusen’s players in Moussa Diaby and Amine Adli, so Tapsoba is the latest to join that list.

Tapsoba has made 46 appearances for Bayer Leverkusen this season, helping them to reach the semi-finals of the Europa League and challenge for European qualification again next season.

They sit sixth in the Bundesliga as it stands, a Europa Conference League spot.

Leverkusen’s final game of the season is on Saturday, away to VfL Bochum, and things will likely start to progress on the transfer front more quickly after that.