Arsenal could be presented with their chance to sign Borussia Dortmund defender Manuel Akanji, with the player ‘considering’ the idea of a move to England.
That’s according to Sport 1, who say the defender is one of the prime candidates to be sold this summer.
Dortmund will be undergoing something of a rebuild this year, with Erling Haaland already on the brink of a move to Manchester City.
While that will raise a significant sum, it will also leave a huge hole in Dortmund’s squad, something that will take a considerable sum to fill.
Akanji is ‘most often mentioned’ in this context as he will have strong competition from Niklas Sule and Nico Schlotterbeck in defence next season.
He is thus ‘considering’ a move to England, where there are clubs reportedly willing to pay as much as €25m for his services.
Sport 1 do not name anyone specifically, but reports over the last month have named Arsenal as one of his suitors, with it stated they had ‘put out feelers’ for the player back in April. That was followed by an explanation they were holding back on making a bid for the time being.
Now, the Gunners aren’t in desperate need of a centre-back at the moment, given Gabriel Magalhaes and Ben White have impressed this season.
The former, though, has been linked with a move to Barcelona in recent weeks, so perhaps Akanji could be a replacement for him if that deal were to happen.
That’s a big if at this moment in time, however, although the fact Akanji is at least considering a move to England means there is one major hurdle out of the way if Arsenal do ever make a move to sign him.
