Arsenal are reportedly ahead of Barcelona in the running for Pau Torres after deciding to accelerate efforts to sign the Villarreal defender this January.
The 23-year-old has shone in La Liga in recent times and it looks like he is being lined up for a move to a bigger club, with Arsenal and Barcelona mentioned as his two main suitors by Don Balon.
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However, it seems that the Gunners’ failure to land Pablo Mari means they’re now set to press ahead with a move for Torres, who had initially been a summer target for them, according to Don Balon.
The report adds that Torres could cost around £42million, which looks like very reasonable money for one of the finest young centre-backs in Europe at the moment.
Arsenal urgently need to strengthen in that area of the pitch after the poor form of the likes of David Luiz and Sokratis Papastathopoulos this season.
Mari could have been a decent signing for that position, but a £42m deal for someone like Torres would show more ambition and surely please the club’s long-suffering fans.
Arsenal surely need to be chasing players that clubs like Barca are also going after, rather than the kind of bargain basement buys they’ve often gone for in recent times.