“Competition for Gabriel Magalhaes”: Arsenal eye ‘cut-price deal’ for Bundesliga defender as Arteta seeks ‘competition’ for Gabriel
Mikel Arteta is reportedly keen on bringing Eintracht Frankfurt defender Evan Ndicka to Arsenal to provide competition for Gabriel Magalhaes.
The Gunners tried to sign Lisandro Martinez in the summer transfer window before the Argentine left Ajax for Manchester United.
Although Arteta envisioned playing Martinez as a left-back, he can also play in the centre of defence.
After a deal to sign the Red Devils defender fell through, Arsenal brought in Oleksandr Zinchenko from Manchester City.
The Ukrainian international has been terrific since moving to north London, though he has struggled to stay fit.
Following the departure of Pablo Mari, Arteta’s only left-footed centre-half is Brazilian international Gabriel.
This could force the Spanish manager into the transfer market in January, though he does have a few right-footed options at his disposal.
Benjamin White has played as a right-back this season, with William Saliba starring in the heart of the defence next to Gabriel.
The £50million England international will be able to slot into a central role should injuries force Arteta’s hand.
Rob Holding is also available and it seems that the Gunners manager has a lot of faith in him, so will not hesitate to call upon the former Bolton defender.
Despite this, Arteta does not have a great amount of defensive resources and has to use at least one of his Premier League regulars when competing in the Europa League.
Away to Bodo/Glimt last week, White and Saliba started, while Gabriel played against the Norwegian side at the Emirates.
Gabriel also played in the Gunners’ European opener at FC Zurich, and it remains to be seen how Arteta will line up against PSV on Thursday evening.
Arsenal were not linked with many central defenders in the summer, but are reportedly keeping tabs on Frankfurt’s Ndicka.
This is according to the Evening Standard, who add that Arteta looked at Calvin Bassey during the summer window before he joined Ajax from Rangers for around £26m.
Arteta is keen to provide ‘competition’ for Gabriel, and the Frenchman could be the perfect addition.
Ndicka is out of contract in 2023 and although Frankfurt are keen to extend his deal, ‘could be tempted’ to sell him for a bargain in the winter to avoid losing him for nothing.
Several clubs are monitoring the 23-year-old, including Juventus, the report adds.
Arsenal could potentially wait until the summer to land Ndicka on a free transfer.
The French centre-half has Champions League experience and recently played against Tottenham in the competition.
The uncapped France international has already featured 16 times across all competitions this term and has played all but seven minutes in the Bundesliga in 2022-23.
His side have picked up two clean sheets in the Champions League, including one at home to Spurs.
In 155 matches for Frankfurt, Ndicka has scored ten goals.
