Arsenal looks to sign £25m Brazilian midfield ace

Bengaluru, Jan 19: Arsenal are expected to strengthen their side in January and already there have been many names linked with them.

It is understood that Arteta's main priority in January is to land a defender with players such as Jerome Boateng, Dayot Upamecano and John Stones etc being linked with a move.

However, it is not just defenders who have been linked over the window, with the North London side also being linked with moves for other areas.

As per the latest report of Brazilian outlet GloboEsporte, Atletico Paranaense's Brazilian midfielder Bruno Guimaraes is the latest name to be attracting interest from Arsenal following his excellent performances in the Brazilian Serie A.

The 22-year-old central midfielder was a part of the Atlético Paranaense side that won the Copa do Brasil and Copa Sudamericana Championship last season. The midfielder’s contract with the Brazilian side expires only in 2023.

Arsenal’s technical director Edu reportedly have been impressed with the player's growth over the years and is reportedly now due to hold talks with the player's agent who may command a fee in the range of €25-€30 million.

Edu wants to utilise his South American connections to land one of Brazilian football’s most highly-rated youngsters who apparently is also being chased by the likes of Chelsea, Benfica and Atletico Madrid.

Edu used his contacts in South America to land latest Arsenal sensation Martinelli earlier in Summer ahead of the likes of Manchester United and Barcelona, and he is expected to work on the same in January now.

What will he bring to the Arsenal side?

Arsenal although have plenty of options in the midfield but Arteta looks to be rebuilding the squad for future. The midfielder could be a useful player for Arteta's possession-based system. The 22-year-old is regarded as a technically gifted midfielder for his passing and distributing skill from the middle of the park and controlling the tempo of the game.

Guimaraes plays largely as a defensive midfielder for Paranaense and averages 5.5 long balls and 1.8 key passes per game in the league, while also making 64.8 passes per game on an average as per whoscored.

He could well be a good replacement of Dani Ceballos who after an initial good start looks to be out of the picture of Arteta's plan.

However, if he arrives in January he may not quite get into the starting XI on a consistent basis. Arteta have used Xhaka and Torreira regularly so far with a double pivot and Guimaraes is quite the same mould of them. Moreover, they already have a good young midfielder in Matteo Guendouzi waiting in the ranks. So, if he signs for the side he right now would be a squad player waiting to be more polished. But, in the Summer with one or two names from the squad expected to be cut off, he could be a good addition to look into.