BREAKING: Mikel Arteta has requested that Arsenal hold ‘talks’ with ‘one of this summer’s most wanted player’- Arsenal are already working on agreeing a possible deal with the ‘most wanted’ star man
Arsenal have “held talks” to sign Southampton starlet Romeo Lavia, reports 90min journalist Graeme Bailey.
Which players are Arsenal signing in 2023?
The Gunners have been on fire in the transfer market so far this summer, splashing the cash to ensure their incredible 2022/23 season under Mikel Arteta is no flash in the pan.
The north Londoners have already announced the signing of Kai Havertz from Chelsea – a sure sign of the power shift in the capital – and deals for Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber are thought to be all but done.
Arteta and Edu’s work won’t finish there however, due to the fact that they are also set to lose some key players from the team that performed so well last term.
Granit Xhaka has left the club to join Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen while Thomas Partey is also thought to be likely to leave, so the addition of Rice may need to be accompanied by another new arrival in the centre of the park.
And that’s where Lavia could come in, with the Southampton youngster expected to depart after the Saints’ relegation from the Premier League. The 19 year-old is one of several midfield targets to be linked – the likes of Moises Caicedo and even Real Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni have been mentioned – but the Belgium international appears to be the most advanced.
Are Arsenal signing Romeo Lavia?
Indeed, the Gunners have actually “held talks” to sign the former Manchester City starlet, reports Bailey, but they aren’t alone as Chelsea and Liverpool have also made the same steps.
Manchester City, Manchester United and Newcastle are also keeping an eye on the situation, with the teenager “emerging as one of this summer’s most in-demand players”. Saints apparently expect to recoup £50m to sell their prized asset.
It’s hard to imagine Lavia coming in and starting week in week out for the Gunners – he is outperformed by Rice in all but three of FBRef’s key metrics for defensive midfielders – but he would be an excellent option to have in the building depending on the opposition, especially with tricky European ties on the way.
The three areas he actually betters Rice in are tackles, blocks and successful take-ons, painting the picture of a player who is excellent at shielding the back four, breaking up play and then weaving out of tight situations to retain possession once he has taken it.
With Rice sure to be striding forward and aiding the more attack-minded players in the XI, having a pure number six behind the England international in certain games would allow him to focus more on those attacking phases of play, and Lavia looks the perfect candidate.
You don’t need to look far to find plaudits for the tough-tackling ace either, with Pep Guardiola saying this earlier this year “We had, and we have, an incredible opinion about him. We thought to keep him, but maybe he would not (get) enough minutes like he has in Southampton.”
Many pundits and fans alike have pointed out the similarities between the way Arteta’s team operates and Pep’s City, so it is no surprise to see the boss looking to recruit a player valued so highly by his former mentor, and the interest from various big six rivals shows exactly how Lavia is seen by those around the game.
