"They have that relationship"- Agbonlahor says Arsenal could lure Manchester City duo because of Mikel Arteta
Former Aston Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor believes Arsenal could sign Manchester City's Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko due to their relationship with Gunners boss Mikel Arteta. The Spaniard spent three years as an assistant coach at the Etihad Stadium before joining Arsenal in 2019.
Arsenal are in desperate need of attacking reinforcements. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang left the club by mutual consent in January after falling out of favor with Mikel Arteta.
Alexandre Lacazette is also set to leave the club after the expiration of his contract this summer. According to Football Insider, the club are confident of signing Gabriel Jesus, who is believed to have agreed personal terms with the Gunners.
Reports suggest the opportunity to work with Mikel Arteta once again is one of the main reasons behind Jesus' willingness to join Arsenal.
Agbonlahor believes Arteta could also lure Zinchenko to the Emirates if the club give him the chance to play as a midfielder. The Ukrainian plays as a midfielder for his national team but has been deployed as a left-back during his time with Manchester City.
"Arteta could be the reason that Gabriel Jesus and Zinchenko sign. They will have worked with him, he was a coach at Man City do they have that relationship with him. If they can promise him a role in midfield, I think he would be perfect. I'd take him all day if I was an Arsenal fan. He showed in the World Cup play-off games how good he is in that midfield role," Agbonlahor told Football Insider.
"I'm sure it's something Arsenal will be looking at but maybe Pep might want to keep him as cover at left-back. They've got a lot of games as well with five substitutes."
As per the Evening Standard, Arsenal could join a number of teams in the race to sign Oleksandr Zinchenko. Zinchenko made 28 appearances in all competitions for Manchester City last season. The 25-year-old is currently the club's second-choice left-back behind Joao Cancelo.
Arsenal are expected to sign a ball-playing midfielder to play alongside Thomas Partey at the centre of the park next season. Granit Xhaka and Mohamed Elneny produced a number of impressive performances towards the end of last season, but the duo lack the consistency required to be regular starters for the club.
Zinchenko's passing, creativity, and defensive abilities could make him the ideal partner for Partey. Mikel Arteta will be aware of the Manchester City star's abilities and could be willing to offer him a midfield role if he joins the Gunners.
Arsenal and West Ham two of the clubs interested in Zinchenko.
Story with @MalikOuzia_
standard.co.uk/sport/football…
Arsenal need to part ways with fringe players before they can sign Manchester City's Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko
Arsenal will need to sell some of their fringe players to raise funds and create space in the squad for the potential arrivals of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Hector Bellerin is set to return to the club after his successful loan spell with Real Betis. As per Football.london, the Spaniard is keen to join Real Betis permanently this summer, but the club lack the funds required to sign him. Arsenal must attempt to find a new home for Bellerin as he could fetch a sizeable fee thanks to his age, experience, and impressive performances for Betis.
Arsenal are prepared to cut their losses on record signing Nicolas Pepe after failing to live up to his price tag in London.
Whilst they shouldn’t have too much of a problem recouping £20-25m for the Ivorian, the £140k wages may be a stumbling block. breakingthelines.com/opinion/after-… https://t.co/AHWTy0mvh5
Nicolas Pepe made just 23 appearances in all competitions for Arsenal last season. The Ivorian has seemingly fallen out of favor with Mikel Arteta and is expected to secure a move away from the club this summer.