Arsenal have enquired about the availability of Barcelona’s teenage defender Mikayil Faye as Mikel Arteta eyes a young star at the back.
According to the Daily Mail, Arsenal are interested in Mikayil Faye ahead of the summer and have enquired the teenage defender. Mikel Arteta wants to add a versatile defender at the back, with the Barcelona Atletic star rated at £17 million in the market.
Arsenal make Mikayil Faye enquiry
Mikel Arteta is sure to add a new defender in the close season. The Spaniard is not understood to be eyeing an established option in the position. Instead, he wants a young option versatile enough to play centrally and occasionally as a full-back.
According to recent links to some players, a left-footed option will be more favourable. Now, Arsenal appear to have added Barcelona Atletic defender Mikayil Faye to their list. The Senegal teenager already attracts plenty of interest from suitors, but the Catalan giants have yet to show any interest in selling him.
Arteta wants someone as versatile as Faye to come in and add some defensive cover in the centre-back and full-back positions. They are also linked with Ousmane Diomande. But he appears more of a right-sided option, although it does seem ideal to add cover for William Saliba.
Faye, rated at £17 million, might see his progression into the Barcelona first team blocked by the emergence of Pau Cubarsi. Other formidable options like Andreas Christensen, Ronald Araujo and Alejandro Balde come in the way of the 19-year-old Barcelona wonderkid, which could see the club consider a sale. Arsenal have already made an enquiry, with some more clubs likely to come in with an interest.
Arsenal’s quest to sign a young defender
The addition of Faye would make complete sense for Arteta ahead of the summer, although the Gunners manager has more options on his list. Ajax teenager Jorrel Hato remains a target and is considered pretty high on Arsenal’s list of potential young defender targets.
As mentioned earlier, Diomande remains a possibility, and along with Faye, it is clear what Arsenal need to strengthen their backline. There are some links about Oleksandr Zinchenko moving away, which would create an opening for a particular style of player to come in. At the same time, the Gunners are also expected to sell Kieran Tierney and could even consider offers for Jakub Kiwior.
