Mikel Arteta has enjoyed a spritely start to the transfer window, with Edu welcoming four signings to the Emirates Stadium this summer. The Gunners have brought in Fabio Vieira, Matt Turner, Marquinhos and Gabriel Jesus, but there has been little indication that the north Londoners' business is set to stop there.
Maxence Lacroix has quickly become heavily linked with a move to Arsenal, but the 22-year-old Wolfsburg defender could cost as much as £25million, according to reports. football.london understand that the Gunners boss is keen to bolster the left side of defence, providing that the club can offload a number of fringe players.
And, according to French outlet Media Foot, the north Londoners are tracking the progress of the former France youth international following a somewhat impressive campaign in the Bundesliga. Lacroix, who sees his contract at the Volkswagen Arena expire in 2025, featured 29 times for Niko Kovac's side, earning a reputation as an all-encompassing modern centre-half.
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However, with Arsenal having already spent around £87million this summer, Edu should be inclined to generate a windfall from fringe players to fund a deal for Lacroix. Arteta has taken a strong strong to Germany for the Gunners pre-season tour, with the likes of London Colney starlets Charlie Patino, Reull Waters, Salah Oulad M'hand and Lino Sousa.
However, while Arsenal boast a wealth of healthy options, several players could be moved on to open opportunities for emerging prodigies and new signings - namely, Lacroix. Edu could garner as much as £54million for the out-of-favour Pablo Mari, Lucas Torreira, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Nicolas Pepe, according to Transfermarkt.
With aforementioned funding, Arteta can step closer to enjoying another fruitful summer transfer window, as he did last year. And, the Spaniard expects no less from Edu.
When asked if he expects another busy transfer window in terms of player recruitment, Arteta said: "I am expecting so, yes. I think both competitions [the Champions League and Europa League] require a much larger squad because the amount of games you play is much bigger in both, so I don’t think [which you qualify for] makes a lot of difference or changes a lot.
"If you can financially afford it and we don’t have to do the turnaround in the squad that we’ve had to do, if you ask me what I want it’s 22 outfield players and three goalkeepers. You have to come a long way in the aspects that you see on the pitch, it’s a lot of things that have to be put in place, and that takes time."
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