Arsenal have reportedly been keeping a close eye on Bayer Leverkusen defender Jeremie Frimpong as the Gunners scour the transfer market for a new right-back in 2024.
According to football transfers’ expert Fabrizio Romano (via CaughtOffside), Arsenal are apparently in the frame to bring electric Bayer Leverkusen right-back Jeremie Frimpong to the Premier League, having been keeping tabs on his performances.
Speaking to CaughtOffside for his Daily Briefing column, Romano said: “Arsenal have been scouting Jeremie Frimpong, as reported yesterday, and a new right-back is one of the positions they are exploring, for sure.
“It’s not something imminent but they are keeping close eye on right-backs for 2024. We’ll have to see soon who the concrete names end up being, but my opinion remains that Joao Cancelo is one of the best in the business in that role and a bargain for Barcelona this season.”
Frimpong has been on fire for the Bundesliga leaders this term, scoring six goals and providing seven assists in 17 appearances across all competitions. He has arguably been the best attack-minded full-back or wing-back in Europe since Xabi Alonso took charge of Leverkusen last October.
It is no surprise to see a lot of interest in the former Celtic player, with Chelsea, Liverpool, and Real Madrid all courting his services. In the summer transfer window, Manchester United were tipped to sign the right-back in order to make him a replacement for Diogo Dalot and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
Arsenal were also backed to enter negotiations with Leverkusen over a potential summer deal after summer recruit Jurrien Timber suffered a long-term ACL injury back in August. However, no such move arrived, and the 22-year-old resultantly stayed in Germany.
Frimpong didn’t sulk after that failed transfer, though. His electric performances out wide have helped Leverkusen win 17 out of their 18 matches in all competitions so far, sending them to the top of both the Bundesliga and their Europa League group.
The chiefs at BayArena will be delighted with how the player is performing and have tied him down to a new contract until 2028 with the club only recently. However, it is clear that they will have to deal with plenty of interest in their top performers next year.
Of course, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta already has Ben White, Jurrien Timber, and Takehiro Tomiyasu as right-backs in his squad. But Tomiyasu has covered left-back this season, while Timber can also operate in central defence. Therefore, Frimpong would be able to battle White for a starting spot at right-back.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta uses an inverted full-back on the left side in his system, with White having the freedom to maraud forwards and join the attack on the right. Frimpong’s role as a wing-back is very different from that of a conventional full-back, meaning he is much stronger offensively than defensively, so he will be better suited for that role than White on Arsenal’s side.
It is certainly an interesting link, but Arsenal will have to wait until the end of the campaign before they can snare Frimpong, as Leverkusen will reject all approaches this winter amid their unprecedented Bundesliga title charge.
