Arsenal keen on signing Barcelona target who has a £53 million release clause: Reports

Arsenal are keen to beat Barcelona to the signing of midfielder Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad as they look to further add to their midfield depth.

This is as per reports from football.london (via Caught Offside), which add that the Gunners are looking to onboard the Spaniard despite only just adding Declan Rice to their ranks.

Both Mikel Arteta and Xavi are said to be admirers of Martin Zubimendi's skillset and are keen to prise the 24-year-old away from the San Sebastian.

The Real Sociedad man has expressed his desire to remain at his current club despite Arsenal and Barcelona's interest. However, there is little he will be able to do should either of the two European giants trigger his £53 million release clause.

The Gunners came within touching distance of winning the Premier League title last season. They slipped up in the run-in due to injuries to key players, weakening their squad before key games.

Arteta will be hoping to prevent a repetition of the same and hence will look to bolster his midfield in the January transfer window. Arsenal are currently leading the Premier League after 17 games and shrewd transfer business could put them in a strong position to compete.

Barcelona, on the other hand, comfortably won La Liga last season but already find themselves seven points adrift of leaders Girona halfway through the campaign. Xavi will need to add depth to offset the frequent injuries the Catalan side have been facing in order to compete on multiple fronts.

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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta opens up on four years at the club

Mikel Arteta joined Arsenal as their head coach on December 22, 2019, before eventually being appointed as the manager of the first team.

Speaking ahead of his side's trip to face Liverpool at Anfield (via Sky Sports), Arteta was asked whether he would take the place his team are currently in.

"I'm sure I would. But we still haven't won enough important things. And we want to be better and we want to be more successful.

"There are a lot of things we have achieved together in those four years, but that is thanks to the people that are living this journey with us, and the ones that were with us as well."

Arteta won the FA Cup in his first season in charge, but could only guide the Gunners to consecutive eighth-placed finishes in 2019-20 and 2020-21. They then finished fourth in the 2021-22 campaign.

Last season was when the Spaniard's influence on the Arsenal squad really shone through as they gave Manchester City a tough fight for the Premier League title.

The Gunners are well-placed this year as well as they are top of the league with 39 points from 17 games so far.