Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal are expected to win the race for the services of Real Sociedad star midfielder Mikel Merino amidst interest from Barcelona.
According to a report from SPORT via SportWitness, Arsenal could soon complete another major signing in the ongoing transfer window as everything indicates that Real Sociedad’s Mikel Merino will be joining the North London club. While there is interest from Barcelona, the Catalan giants seem to be playing catch up at this stage.
Merino has been a consistent performer for the Spanish club over the years. He joined them back in 2018 and has only gone from strength to strength since. While he has been an integral part of their first team, the Spanish international seems all set for a new adventure.
Sociedad did try to extend his stay beyond 2025 but the player is not willing to pen down a new deal. The Spanish club will only sanction his departure if they receive a decent proposal as they are open to letting him stay and run down his deal.
Spanish rivals want to sign Sociedad star Merino
Atletico Madrid are one of the clubs who have been keeping a close eye on the 28-year-old midfielder’s situation at Sociedad. Simeone wants him at his disposal but the player is not interested in a move to the Madrid-based club.
Barcelona are also keen on signing him as they want to reinforce their midfield which has struggled because of injuries to key players. Merino is a priority target for the Spanish giants but according to the report, it is almost impossible for them to sign him unless they are ready to part ways with Frenkie de Jong.
Mikel Merino to join Arsenal
With a move to Barcelona not possible, and Atletico’s project not appealing enough, Merino seems set to move to the Premier League. Everything seems to indicate that he will be joining Mikel Arteta who desperately wants to add more quality to their squad in an attempt to win the league title.
The Gunners have been working on a potential transfer for some time now and the report suggests that Arteta’s team are all set to offer around €25 million which should be enough to convince Sociedad to sanction his departure.
