Emirates Stadium side look to clinch swap deal with Old Trafford side.
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Arsenal are ready to allow back-up defender Thomas Vermaelen to enter into talks with Man United but will only sell the Belgian in a deal that would see Old Trafford winger Nani move in the other direction.
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CaughtOffside understands that the 27 year old Portuguese international has long been admired by Gunners boss Arsene Wenger, who feels this is the perfect opportunity to make his move for the Man United bit-part player.
Incoming Man United boss Louis van Gaal is keen to re-structure his defence following the summer exits of veteran duo Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic and believes that Emirates Stadium skipper Vermaelen is a solid option to pursue.
Vermaelen has been left to warm the bench for the best part of 18 months with Wenger preferring Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker as his first choice central defensive pairing, and unsurprisingly the talented 28 year old is now considering his options and would presumably jump at the chance of a move to Man United.
Wenger is keen to strengthen his attack and a move for wide-man Nani makes a great deal of sense, not least as both Lukas Podolski and Theo Walcott both spent large portions of 2013/14 out injured.
Nani has struggled at Man United in recent seasons and may well not be part of van Gaal’s long term plans and as such could welcome a move to north London.
The former Sporting Lisbon man spent years in the shadow of national team colleague Cristiano Ronaldo but did come to the fore in Man United’s 2010/11 Premier League title winning campaign, finishing the season as one of the top tier’s leading assist makers.
However Nani was then dropped from Sir Alex Ferguson’s starting eleven for the 2011 Champions League final and has been on the periphery ever since.
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