Arsenal linked with Marseille defender Nicolas N’Koulou

Nicolas N’Koulou goes in for a tackle against Borussia Dortmund’s Marco Reus.

Arsene Wenger is looking to strengthen his squad whilst he is in a position of power and The Metro are reporting that Nicolas N’Koulou is just one of a number of players the Frenchman is interested in.

Former Arsenal player and now a member of the club’s scouting network, Gilles Grimandi, was sent to watch the Cameroon international in Tuesday’s Champions League defeat to Napoli. N’Koulou has been on Arsenal’s radar for nearly 5 years now and with Thomas Vermaelen‘s career at the Emirates coming to a close, the Marseille defender could be just what the Gunners need.

The 23-year old centre back can play in a number of other positions, including right-back and midfield, and his versatility could prove to be a key asset in Arsenal’s quest to end their trophy drought. Gary Neville suggested after the victory over Dortmund on Wednesday evening, that all that stood in the way of Arsenal reaching their goals this season is if their defence is exposed to injuries and bringing in N’Koulou would be a sure way of tackling this issue.

With Wenger still having a major chunk of the transfer funds that were made available to him in the summer, he would be wise to bring in reinforcements in January to, if anything, add depth to his squad. Although N’Koulou would be ineligible for the latter stages of the Champions League should Arsenal qualify, his versatility and no-nonsense tackling would be a great asset to Wenger’s side as they aim to be competing on for the FA Cup, Champions League and Premier League crowns when May comes around.

Nicolas N’Koulou has been successful in 36 of the 37 (98%) tackles he has gone in for this season. Kieran Gibbs (64%) comes closest from Arsenal’s current squad, completing 25 of his 39 attempted.