Arsenal transfer news: Barcelona star Andre Gomes targeted by Unai Emery

Gomes for the Gunners?

There are expected to be some sacrificial lambs in the Arsenal dressing room this month, with Unai Emery reportedly lining up a big-money move for Barcelona midfielder Andre Gomes.

According to talkSPORT, the new Gunners’ gaffer believes the 24-year-old would be a perfect addition to the Arsenal midfield, even though the Portugal international has failed to nail down a starting spot at Barca since arriving from Benfica in 2016.

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The Spanish side are ready to listen to offers for Gomes, who is also attracting interest from Chelsea and Spurs, despite being under contract at the Camp Nou until 2021, the website says. That should please Emery, who is said to be so desperate to land the playmaker that he is prepared to sacrifice several Arsenal stars in order to raise the necessary funds.

Arsenal’s piggy bank is almost empty after forking out millions on Bernd Leno, Stephan Lichtsteiner and Sokratis Papastathopoulos. To find the £30m needed for Gomes, the club is expected to offload defender Shkodran Mustafi, frontman Lucas Perez and glovemen Petr Cech and David Ospina.

Battle for Pavard

Following his stunning strike for France in Saturday’s epic 4-3 World Cup win over Argentina, 22-year-old right-back Benjamin Pavard is being chased by a number of clubs, with Arsenal at the head of the pack.

French media claim that Bayern Munich are circling the Stuttgart defender, but the Daily Mirror says that Arsenal lead Tottenham and Napoli in the race to secure the services of the attacking blocker.

Pavard scored a 30-yard screamer to knock out Argentina, and his all-round efficiency has attracted interest from across Europe.

“We’ve had enquiries from some of Europe’s top clubs,” admitted Stuttgart’s sporting director, Michael Reschke. “But we don’t want to sell him this summer, not even for €50m [£44m]. We want to keep him.”

However, Reschke noted that Pavard’s contract expires on 1 July 2019, and made it clear the club will listen to offers at that point. “We are interested in the idea of finding a quick solution with one of the interested clubs,” he said.

N’Zonzi keen on return to England

The Sun reports that French midfielder Steven N’Zonzi has told Sevilla that he wants to leave and return to England.

N’Zonzi formerly played in the Premier League for Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City, and is now a target for Arsenal. If the Gunners are to make a move for the 29-year-old, they will have to pay the £35m release fee in his contract at the Spanish club.

The London side may face some tough competition, with Italian giants Juventus also keen on the French international.