Arsenal are among four clubs that are keen on signing Southampton defender Ryan Bertrand on a Bosman move this coming summer.
According to a report by Goal, Arsenal have stepped up their efforts to sign Ryan Bertrand in the summer transfer window. The Gunners have initiated talks with the 31-year-old English defender, who is set to leave Southampton as a free agent.
In addition to Arsenal, Manchester City, AC Milan and AS Monaco are also interested in signing the former Chelsea man, with each of the clubs making an approach already. The eagerness of Arsenal, in particular, though, makes a great deal of sense.
Arsenal have a promising young left-back in Kieran Tierney, with the Scottish international constantly growing in stature in the north Londoners’ first-team setup. However, the 23-year-old has had his fair share of injury troubles at the Emirates, which has often put Mikel Arteta in a spot of bother.
While the Arsenal manager initially made use of Cedric Soares on the left side of the defence, lately, he has utilised Granit Xhaka as a makeshift left-back, which really shows the extent of his woes. Indeed, after allowing Sead Kolasinac to join Schalke on loan in January, the Gunners failed to sign a left-back, although Bertrand had been a target in the winter as well.
Heading into the summer, Arsenal will hope to right the wrongs of the January transfer window, making Bertrand a viable target, who is even more appealing owing to the fact that he will come for free, as far as transfer fee is concerned.
The 31-year-old has created quite a career for himself since leaving Chelsea to join Southampton in the summer of 2014. After initially joining the Saints on loan, the Premier League outfit made his move permanent a year later and he has not really looked back since, even briefly being made the club captain.
Till date, Bertrand has made 240 appearances for Southampton, even chipping in with 8 goals and 20 assists. However, with contract talks between him and the Saints breaking down, Arsenal have rightly been showing an interest over a possible Bosman move this summer. The competition from Manchester City, AC Milan and AS Monaco, though, is concerning.
While Manchester City also need a left-back due to Benajmin Mendy’s own injury problems, AC Milan would want Bertrand as a backup to Theo Hernandez. AS Monaco could possibly sign Ryan Bertrand as a replacement for Caio Henrique, who is being courted by Barcelona. Arsenal, though, will hope to stave off the trio to secure the services of the 31-year-old this summer.
