Arsenal will reportedly have to fend off Barcelona this summer if they wish to land Layvin Kurzawa’s signature as he prepares for an exit from Paris Saint-Germain.
The 27-year-old will see his current contract with the reigning Ligue 1 champions expire this summer, and as he continues to edge closer towards becoming a free agent, it doesn’t appear as though a new deal will be signed.
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Time will tell if that changes over the coming months, but speculation is linking a number of top clubs from around Europe with an interest in the left-back.
According to Sport, as re-reported by the Sun, Kurzawa has emerged on Barcelona’s transfer radar this summer should they decide to sell Junior Firpo.
The report goes on to note that Arsenal, Liverpool, Inter and Napoli are all keen on the PSG ace, but it’s the Sun who claim that the Gunners are particularly interested and now face a battle with Barcelona to secure the signing of Kurzawa this summer.
Even if Firpo was to leave Barcelona, Kurzawa would face a battle to displace Jordi Alba in the starting line-up and so that could be a factor in his decision.
Arsenal have Sead Kolasinac and Kieran Tierney in that department, and so perhaps question marks will be raised over why Arteta needs another left-back at all.
That said, that duo have struggled with injuries this season, and so Kurzawa could be seen as an alternative solution to offer more reliability on that side of the defence.
As things stand, Arsenal are currently down in ninth place in the Premier League table, eight points adrift of fourth spot.
They’ve conceded 36 goals in 28 league games so far this season, giving them the third worst defensive record of the top 10 sides in the standings.
In turn, it’s an area in which they can seemingly improve, but time will tell if they can fend off Barcelona and other interested parties to bring Kurzawa to the Emirates to help shore up the left flank.