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Arsenal target Premier League stars to reform their British core

Arsenal are looking to buy British talents this summer in order to revamp Unai Emery’s squad with homegrown talent.

Bengaluru, May 8: Arsenal are looking to buy British talents this summer in order to revamp Unai Emery’s squad with homegrown talent.

The Gunners had England Under-21 full-back Ainsley Maitland-Niles in their team facing Valencia in the Europa League semi-final but every other player was non-British.

Aaron Ramsey will depart for Juventus at the end of the campaign and Emery’s first-team squad will lose another homegrown influence.

Their determination to get British talent into the first-team has seen them track Bournemouth winger Ryan Fraser, who has one year left on his contract.

The Scottish winger is not “homegrown” on the Premier League squad list but has played in England for seven years since moving down from Aberdeen.

Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha, who has admirers at Arsenal, is considered homegrown despite switching countries to play for Ivory Coast.

Emery’s targets and budget will depend on whether gets Arsenal into the Champions League, via a fourth-placed finish in the Premier League or winning the Europa League.

He might have to settle for a war-chest of just £40million if they spend another season in the Europa League. But the club want the summer spend to bolster its core with players brought up in the Premier League.

Only Carl Jenkinson remains from the famous 2012 picture of Arsene Wenger with five young Brits signing new deals at Arsenal.



Ramsey is the latest to have joined Jack Wilshere, Kieran Gibbs and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in leaving the club. Jenkinson is also nowhere near the first-team picture and is unlikely to have a future at the Emirates.

Zaha has been a player wanted by several big clubs in the last few transfer windows and it seems very unlikely that Crystal Palace will accept a £40m bid for him.

Even if they do, Arsenal will run out of funds to invest elsewhere which is also desperately needed.
Story first published: Wednesday, May 8, 2019, 14:31 [IST]
Other articles published on May 8, 2019