German side already looking for a Benedikt Howedes replacement?
Bundesliga outfit FC Schalke 04 are one of two continental teams eyeing up a £10 million January move for out-of-favour Manchester City centre back Matija Nastasic, report the Mail, in news which could come as a boost to Arsenal as it indicates that Roberto di Matteo’s side are already searching for a replacement for German international Benedikt Howedes, who has been linked with the Gunners.
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Nastasic initially impressed at the Etihad Stadium, with the Serbian international showing plenty of potential as a cultured central defender, but he has fallen out of favour under Manuel Pellegrini and looks certain to leave, with Arsenal being mentioned as a potential destination themselves at one point.
It would appear that a return to continental Europe is on the cards for Nastasic, however, with di Matteo’s Schalke and AC Milan, currently struggling to break back into the Serie A elite under former striker Pippo Inzaghi, believed to be the clear frontrunners in the battle to secure Nastasic’s signature in January.
The report suggests that Schalke’s interest in Nastasic stems directly from Arsenal’s monitoring of their own man at the back, with Howedes, who has so far only played for the Gelsenkirchen club in his career, strongly linked with a January move to the Emirates Stadium as Arsene Wenger searches for reinforcements.