Arsenal Transfer News Roundup: Gunners backed to win Declan Rice race; club edging closer to Ivan Fresneda, and more - January 21, 2023

Arsenal are likely to explore options to reinforce their squad before the end of January. Mikel Arteta is expected to look at a few signings to fuel his charge for the Premier League title.

Meanwhile, former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy has backed the Gunners to win the race for Declan Rice. Elsewhere, the north London side are edging closer to securing the signature of Ivan Fresneda.

On that note, here's a look at the key Arsenal transfer stories as on January 21, 2023:

Arsenal backed to win Declan Rice race

Declan Rice (left) is wanted at the Emirates

Danny Murphy reckons Arsenal can win the race to sign Declan Rice. The Englishman is likely to leave West Ham United in the summer, and the Gunners are in the mix for the player's services. Chelsea and Manchester United have also been linked with the player, who has consistently been among the best midfielders in the Premier League.

Arteta is putting together a team capable of dominating for years. While he has a settled midfield right now, there's certainly room for improvement in the middle of the park. Rice would be a superb choice for Arteta and could be an upgrade on his current options of Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey.

✅ “Rice gets into Chelsea’s team, United’s team, Liverpool’s team!”

🔵 “Dec's a Chelsea fan, but Chelsea doesn’t look appetising for me.”

🔴 “Maybe the Arsenal thing’s become much more attractive…”

Danny Murphy says Declan Rice should pick #AFC over #CFC if given the choice. https://t.co/gBp37FfWEO

Speaking to talkSPORT, as cited by Caught Offside, Murphy said that the north London side need midfield reinforcements if they are to fight for silverware.

“If Arsenal are on the trajectory they’re on, and they have the ambition to move forward and be regular contenders in the Premier League and start playing Champions League football every season, you can’t rely on three midfielders," said Murphy.

Murphy added that Rice will be leaning towards a move to the Emirates and can walk into Arteta's midfield.

“My hunch really at the moment is Arsenal. I think deep down when you’re from a certain area, you might want to stay around your family who support you. Maybe that Arsenal thing has become much more attractive and actually what you said at the beginning, he probably looks at that midfield and thinks, ‘I can get in that team comfortably’," said Murphy.

Rice has appeared 25 times across competitions for the Hammers this season, scoring one goal and setting up three more.

Gunners edging closer to Ivan Fresneda

Ivan Fresneda could be on his way to the Emirates.

Arsenal are inching closer to securing the signature of Ivan Fresneda, according to Eldesmarque via Caught Offside. The Spanish right-back has earned rave reviews with his performances for Real Valladolid in recent times. The Gunners are among his admirers, alongside Borussia Dortmund and Juventus.

Arteta has built his team around a strong base of youth and has a youth-centric transfer policy. Fresneda fits the bills and is expected to improve in leaps and bounds in time.

The north London side are well stocked in the right-back position, with Ben White doing a marvel;ous job and Takehiro Tomiyasu proving to be an able deputy. However, Fresneda could help sort out the position for years, which explains the interest from Arteta.

Iván Fresneda deal. No decision will be made this week - his agents will return to England next week to discuss with clubs including Arsenal and Newcastle for January move 🇪🇸 #transfers

Cedric Soares and Fulham deal, now crucial to understand Arsenal next move after Kiwior. https://t.co/25BW5tGenM

The 18-year-old has appeared 11 times across competitions for Valladolid. Arteta has personally been in touch with his compatriot to convince him to move to the Emirates. The player is expected to travel to London in the coming days to complete a move.

Arsenal likely to return for Moussa Diaby this summer

Moussa Diaby has admirers at the Emirates.

The Gunners are expected to return for Moussa Diaby at the end of the season, according to journalist Christian Falk.

The French forward has been on a roll for Bayer Leverkusen this season and has turned heads at the Emirates. The north London side are in the hunt for attacking reinforcements after missing out on Mykhaylo Mudryk.

🥅 Since the start of last season, Moussa Diaby has registered a goal contribution every 118.5 minutes in the Bundesliga

👀 In that time, only Christopher Nkunku (45) and Robert Lewandowski (38) have registered more goal contributions in the Bundesliga than Diaby (34) https://t.co/iOUCw4xA5s

Arteta has been hot on the heels of Diaby for a while and also explored the option this month. A move seems unlikely right now, as the Bundesliga giants are unwilling to let him leave in the middle of the season.

In his column for Caught Offside, Falk said that the Gunners attempted to sign the player in vain last summer.

"We know that Arsenal already had contact with Moussa Diaby for last summer, so he’s still on the list, just not for the winter. We heard Leverkusen don’t want to sell him," wrote Falk.

He added:

"Perhaps if Arsenal have a lot of money somewhere, maybe £100m, Leverkusen would then have a discussion, but I don’t think Arsenal can spend that, as we’ve seen from the amount they were prepared to pay for Mykhaylo Mudryk. But they knocked on the door last summer, so I’m sure they’ll knock again next summer.”

Diaby has eight goals and four assists in 22 games for Leverkusen this season across competitions.