Arsenal have reportedly expressed an interest in Juventus defender Daniele Rugani, but have been told that he won’t be cheap to prise away this summer.
The Gunners announced the signing of William Saliba on Thursday in a £27m deal, as per BBC Sport, although the youngster will return to Saint Etienne this season on loan.
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In turn, while it’s a significant investment and a show of faith in the 18-year-old’s ability to be a long-term solution in defence, it doesn’t fix the problem for Unai Emery in the more immediate future.
It certainly is a problem when you consider Arsenal conceded 51 goals in 38 Premier League games last season, giving them the second worst defensive record of the top nine sides.
That is clearly an area which needs to be addressed, and particularly with major doubts still hanging over Laurent Koscielny’s future at the club, as per the Sun, Emery could see his options limited further in that department moving forward.
According to Calciomercato, Arsenal have made an enquiry for Juve ace Rugani, who is expected to struggle for playing time this season given the arrivals of Matthijs de Ligt and Merih Demiral this summer, coupled with the ongoing presence of Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini in the squad.
Time will tell who emerges as Maurizio Sarri’s favoured pairing and what the pecking order looks like, but the report suggests that Arsenal made an enquiry about Rugani but were told that he would cost at least €40m this summer.
It’s added that is enough to put the Gunners off but it’s claimed that they could return in the coming days and continue to try and discuss a favourable deal.
Perhaps one solution for all concerned would be to loan Rugani to the Premier League giants, as he could fill the void until Saliba arrives next summer. The Italian defender would potentially have a better chance of regular playing time and Juve would see him develop further and return next season ready to surpass veterans Bonucci and Chiellini in the pecking order.
While that plan arguably suits all parties, he is now 24 and so perhaps there is an argument to suggest that the time for a loan move has passed and he’ll be looking for a more concrete move for his career.
