Italian news outlet, La Gazzetta Dello Sport claims that Arsenal have joined in on the race for Juventus defender, Medhi Benatia. The 31-year-old has reportedly fallen out of favour with the manager, Massimiliano Allegri and could be on his way out of Turin after the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
The Moroccan is currently representing his country in the international stage with 2 years still left on his Juventus contract. Unai Emery could instigate a conversation with the player’s agents if the Sokratis Papastathopoulos deal goes bust in the coming week.
The Gunners have been linked with Borussia Dortmund’s defensive ace as well but has not confirmed a deal just yet. The German outfit are holding out till July 1 to announce the transfer in order to accommodate the transaction into next quarter’s tax bill.
Nevertheless, it would not be a shock to see Arsenal bring in two top-pedigree defenders after last season’s woes. The Gunners finished the 2017/18 campaign in the 6th spot of the Premier League for the second time in a row and also got knocked out of UEFA Europa League by Atletico Madrid.
While some of the blame lies on the managerial team, the defence was one of the club’s biggest concerns. Both Laurent Koscielny and Shkodran Mustafi struggled to meet the necessary standards, often making schoolboy errors and putting the team in harm’s way.
Koscielny has been ruled out with an Achilles injury until Christmas and Mustafi is expected to be done away with as soon as possible. Calum Chambers and Rob Holding still need to undergo further development and are just not ready for regular first-team football.
This could possibly guarantee a starting spot for Benatia into the starting lineup. The veteran centre-back has heaps of top-flight experience, having spent 3 seasons in France, 4 in the Serie A, 3 with Bayern Munich and the past 2 with Juventus.
He has won the Bundesliga twice and the Serie A twice and also has 55 caps to his name for Morocco. Not only is he capable of solidifying the Arsenal defence, the Gunners will also be getting a prestigious name into the side ahead of the 2018/19 season.
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The question lies in whether Arsenal will be able to attract him to the Emirates without the prospects of Champions League football. Emery has a real task on his hands at convincing the 6 feet 2-inch man to make his way over to North London.
