“We will pay the asking price because the player is worth it and we have high hopes in him”- Arsenal Sporting Director Edu Gasper confirmed Arsenal are ready to pay a very high fee to sign ‘the new Andres Iniesta’ after Barcelona miss out on the player due to lack of funds

ARSENAL WILLING TO PAY FAIRLY HIGH PRICE TO SIGN BARCELONA TARGET ARTHUR VERMEEREN

Arsenal are willing to pay a fairly high price to sign Barcelona target Arthur Vermeeren during the January transfer window, according to Sport (page 12).

The 18-year-old is currently one of the best young midfielders in Belgian football and he recently impressed in the Champions League against Barcelona.

The Catalans have been following the Royal Antwerp teenager for a while, but Sport claim that Arsenal are leading the race to sign him in January.

The north London giants are prepared to pay a fairly high fee of €20 million for the youngster.

Xavi Hernandez’s side are unlikely to spend that much in January amid their financial concerns. Their focus remains on registering Vitor Roque.

VERMEEREN COULD BE A FUTURE STAR IN THE MAKING

The youngster has had a fantastic start to the campaign. He has registered one goal and five assists from just 15 appearances across all competitions for Antwerp.

Two of those assists came in the 3-2 Champions League defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk. Aside from his goal contributions, he has also been brilliant with his distribution.

In his two Champions League group games, Vermeeren has completed 92 per cent of his passes.

He has won a stunning three tackles and six duels per appearance. In addition to this, he has lost possession on just 4.5 occasions which is exceptional at his age.

In our view, the Belgian has all the attributes to become an elite midfielder in the long run. He has already been dubbed as the ‘new Andres Iniesta‘ for his huge potential.

If Arsenal can secure his services in January, it would represent a big coup for them. He could be groomed into a fantastic playmaker, considering his all-round abilities.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com & Sofascore.com