Mikel Arteta has a contingent of fellow Spaniards within his squad in David Raya and Mikel Merino, while there are also a number of English players such as Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Ben White and Ethan Nwaneri.
Arsenal also boast a few Brazilians in Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Magalhaes – with the latter now publicly calling on Andrea Berta to sign another in Rodrygo Goes.
The Brazil international could leave Real Madrid this summer, and the Emirates Stadium may become his new home.
TBR Football understand Arsenal are trying to sign Rodrygo as the £84m-rated South American expresses concerns over his future under Xabi Alonso, wary of competition from Vinicius Junior and Arda Guler after making just 22 starts in La Liga last season out of a possible 38.
Now, Gabriel has shared his thoughts on the situation while speaking on Podpah
The Arsenal No.6 said: “I don’t (know if he is joining) but I’d like (him to) obviously. He’s a phenomenon. I’ve told people already, he’s a phenomenon! If it was up to me, of course.”
Gabriel has previously played 14 games alongside Rodrygo for Brazil, so the central defender is well placed to comment on the Real Madrid No.11 and his ability
TBR Football understand Arsenal are ready to sell Jesus – and he would have most likely been sold already if he wasn’t injured.
The Arsenal No.9 suffered a serious knee injury back in January, and is not expected to return to action until late in the year
However, there is better news for another Brazilian in Martinelli, as sources add that Arsenal are keen to extend the South American’s contract, which is currently set to expire in June 2027.
Therefore, Arteta could be envisaging an attack where Rodrygo plays on the left next to Martinelli in a central role – where the Arsenal No.11 has played before – with Saka in his preferred position on the right.
By all accounts, Arsenal will sign Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad to start their summer, a feat that was beyond Premier League rivals Liverpool a year ago
Of course, a lot of the work in signing Zubimendi was done by Edu Gaspar as well as Mikel Arteta — that’s not necessarily a deal Andrea Berta can solely take credit for.
The Italian will be predominantly judged on the striker Arsenal sign, the elite winger they bring in, and also the players they are able to sell this summer.
And over the last 12 months or so, it’s become clear that Oleksandr Zinchenko is one player who is now surplus to requirements at Arsenal, to put it bluntly
That being said, Italian outlet Gazzetta are now reporting that AC Milan are interested in Zinchenko this summer.
The Italian side are also keen on Jakub Kiwior according to the report, even if it does appear unlikely that both will end up in Milan.
Arsenal want to keep Kiwior, even if he might be keen on a return to Italy, a defender the club still value highly.
However, there should be more willingness on Arsenal’s part to sell Zinchenko, and according to the information, Arsenal would only demand €15m (£13m) for the Ukraine international this summer
Of course, back in 2022 Arsenal paid £32m to sign Zinchenko from Manchester City, a transformative signing for Arteta at the time.
Zinchenko was arguably the first player to master the inverted full-back role at Arsenal, one that Myles Lewis-Skelly now thrives in.
But given how Arsenal have moved on from Zinchenko over the last year or so, they are now ready to accept a £19m loss on the 28-year-old, partly because he’ll only have one year left on his contract this summer.
