Arsenal now keen to sign ‘extraordinary’ £52m maestro compared to Xhaka

Arsenal are now keen to sign an “extraordinary” midfielder, who has been compared to former player Granit Xhaka.

Gunners join midfield race despite summer rebuild

Following the departure of Thomas Partey, it was necessary for Mikel Arteta to rebuild his midfield during the summer transfer window, and Martin Zubimendi was undoubtedly the star signing, with the Spaniard arriving from Real Sociedad.

The midfielder has made a fantastic start to life at the Emirates Stadium, perhaps most impressively with a brace in the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest in September, which drew praise from Arteta.

Zubimendi isn’t the only new arrival either, with Cristian Norgaard arriving from Brentford and attacking midfielder Eberechi Eze arriving from Crystal Palace, with the 13-time England international having picked up two assists in his first five Premier League outings.

Despite the scale of the rebuild that has taken place, the north Londoners have now joined the race for another central midfielder, according to a report from Caught Offside, which states that Arsenal are looking to sign Victor Froholdt from FC Porto.

In fact, despite widespread interest in Froholdt, with Tottenham Hotspur, Brighton & Hove Albion and Atletico Madrid also in the race, the Gunners are said to be “particularly keen”, viewing him as a potential “cornerstone” of their future midfield.

Arteta’s staff have been particularly impressed by the Dane’s “passing range and intelligence”, and his ability to dictate the pace of the game has led to comparisons with Xhaka, who spent seven seasons at the Emirates Stadium.

Porto are open to offers for the 19-year-old, but the Portuguese club are reportedly looking to hold out for a relatively high fee of around €50-60 million (£43-52 million).

Once dubbed ‘extraordinary’ by a Danish analyst, the teenager is a very complete central midfielder, as shown by his performances in a number of important parameters over the past year.

After impressing at FC Copenhagen, collecting eight goals and six assists in 62 appearances, the Dane has since established himself as a key player for Porto, starting in all eight Liga Portugal matches so far this season.

The youngster then scored his first goal for Denmark in his side’s 6-0 win over Belarus last week, while grabbing an assist and maintaining a 93% success rate.

Having signed Norgaard and Zubimendi this summer, Arteta has no need to bring in a new central midfielder, but Froholdt is starting to prove he could be a fantastic long-term addition to the squad.