David Alaba has already given Arsenal major transfer hope as Mikel Arteta plots dream £26m deal
David Alaba has quickly become heavily linked with a move to Arsenal as Mikel Arteta hopes to further bolster his defensive options this summer
Arsenal have been given a major boost to their hopes of signing David Alaba this summer. The 31-year-old defender has quickly become heavily linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium as Mikel Arteta looks to further bolster his backline.
Alaba, who sees his contract at the Santiago Bernabeu expire in 2026, featured 39 times for Real Madrid last season, helping Carlo Ancelotti's side finish second in La Liga and advance to the Champions League semi-final. His impressive performances from left-back and centre-half have reportedly courted the interest of the Gunners, who will be hoping to challenge for the Premier League title once more.
According to Spanish newspaper El Nacional, as quoted by football365, the north Londoners are ready to 'present a formal proposal' to Real Madrid for the Austria international. The report states that Alaba is 'very happy' at Los Blancos so a deal could be difficult to complete.
It's said that Arsenal are 'confident that they can reach an agreement' with the Austrian, who views the Premier League a 'particularly attractive' destination. El Nacional add that Arteta will 'promise' Alaba that he will be an 'indispensable piece' of his starting lineup and a contract offer worth €15million (£13million).
While Real Madrid may be reluctant to offload the £26million-rated defender, he's previously admitted that he grew up supporting the Gunners as a child. In an interview with The Times during his time at Bayern Munich, Alaba said: "I know the Premier League very well because I followed it a lot when I was younger.
"I supported Arsenal. Patrick Vieira was one of my favourite players. At the moment I don’t think too much about it but I can imagine playing somewhere else. I am very focused on Bayern Munich. We really want to reach our goals and I really want to help the team."
Arsenal have made a habit of signing versatile players who can play various positions to an exceptionally high standard – one of whom being Jurrien Timber. Like Alaba, the Netherlands international can play at full-back, centre-half and in midfield.
Upon his transfer from Ajax, Timber told Arsenal club media: "For me it doesn't really matter, I think that I'm lucky to say that I can play as a central defender, as a right full-back, sometimes even on the midfield.
"So I think that's a good thing and I need to keep that. I just like the way Arsenal play, is a bit similar to Ajax’s style and I like to play from the back. I can see a lot of similarities, especially in the way Arsenal and Ajax want to play."
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