Arteta ‘obsessed’ with ‘new Odegaard case’ as Arsenal eye £188m triple transfer swoop

Arsenal are hoping to bring in several new players in the summer transfer window with Brahim Diaz emerging as a target, according to reports.

The Gunners are currently top of the Premier League table with an eight-point cushion on second-placed Manchester City, who have one game in hand in the race for the title.

Arsenal have already announced themselves as serious contenders for major trophies going forward and it’s likely that the Gunners will be able to attract a better calibre of player in the summer on the back of their success.

And Spanish publication Nacional claims that AC Milan attacking midfielder Diaz is seen as a ‘new Odegaard case’ for Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.

Diaz, who is currently on a two-year loan from Real Madrid, could join AC Milan permanently if the Italian giants meet his €22m (£18m) redemption fee,

However, AC Milan are reportedly struggling to stump up the money and want Los Blancos to lower their asking price to between €13-15m.

And Nacional claim that following Arteta’s efforts to make a star out of Martin Odegaard he has now ‘asked the board to take back a footballer discarded by Madrid’, referring to Diaz.

It is understood that Arsenal boss Arteta is ‘obsessed’ with Diaz – who helped Milan win the Scudetto last season – and believes ‘he can have a very leading role at Arsenal’.

Nacional adds: ‘So he hopes to repeat the Odegaard operation , and they are willing to offer an amount similar to what they paid for the Nordic at the time.’

With Arsenal desperate to improve their midfield in the summer, West Ham’s Declan Rice and Brighton’s Moises Caicedo have again been linked with moves.

Rice is reportedly available for around £80m in the next transfer window, while the Seagulls will demand in excess of £90m for Caicedo.

And Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth claims that Arsenal would find it “very difficult” to spend that amount of money on two midfielders in the same window.

“Would that mean no Moises Caicedo? It would be very, very difficult to get both,” Sheth told Give Me Sport.

“I’ve always said they [Arsenal] would be in the market for both. But I just wonder if they were to bring in someone like Declan Rice, who would cost more than £60m-£80m depending on whom you listen to, and if you listen to West Ham, he’s a £100m player, then I think that that might be the budget that they use for the midfield area, and they’d still want to strengthen it in other areas…