New Arsenal boss Unai Emery will be hoping to make an immediate impact at the club next season, and in order to do that, he may bring in some new faces this summer.
The Gunners have now missed out on the top four in the Premier League for two consecutive seasons, and in turn that finally led to the parting of ways with Arsene Wenger after 22 years at the helm.
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The responsibility will now be on Emery’s shoulders to lead Arsenal back into contention for major honours, and given their woeful defensive statistics this past season, it would be easy to assume that would be the first area of the squad that is addressed this summer.
The north London outfit conceded 51 goals in 38 league games last season, giving them the worst defensive record of the top seven sides. To give that greater context, that’s 24 more than champions Manchester City let in.
In turn, that raises alarm bells immediately, but according to The Sun, via Expressen, it’s claimed that Emery could eye a move for RB Leipzig winger Emil Forsberg who is said to be valued at £47m.
The 26-year-old was relatively impressive this past year, scoring five goals and providing four assists in 33 appearances for the Bundesliga side.
However, it was the previous campaign in which he really stood out, tallying a staggering 22 assists along with eight goals in 31 games.
Given Emery can already boast firepower in the shape of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette, Mesut Ozil and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, it would arguably be quite a surprise if he prioritised attacking reinforcements this summer, coupled with the defensive issues outlined above.
Nevertheless, Forsberg would add plenty of creativity and quality in the final third, although with Juventus and Atletico Madrid also keen, as per Expressen, Arsenal could face a scrap to land his signature if they pursue him.