Arsenal have reportedly earmarked Sevilla midfielder Lucien Agoume as a potential successor to Thomas Partey, whose exit is seemingly edging closer.
The Gunners have been locked in talks with Partey over an extension to his current contract, which runs out on June 30, but their bid to agree a renewal is expected to end in failure.
Talks between Arsenal and the Ghana international’s camp are said to have reached a total standstill, and he is now set to leave on a free transfer after five seasons of service to Mikel Arteta.
The North London giants will at least bolster their midfield ranks with the arrival of Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad, and the Spaniard is said to have flown into the UK on Friday to finalise his switch.
However, as both Partey and now-Flamengo man Jorginho could depart in the same summer, Arsenal will be in a weaker position number-six wise if only Zubimendi arrives to fill one pair of boots.
As a result, sporting director Andrea Berta may have to add another deep-lying midfielder to his shopping list, and according to soccerhuz.com, Sevilla’s Agoume has caught the eye of the Gunners.
The 23-year-old was a stalwart of the Palanganas team last season, playing 35 times in La Liga and contributing one goal and three assists from his defensive midfield role.
Agoume has also won 12 caps for the France Under-21 side and is currently representing Les Bleuets at the Under-21 Euros, where his nation will take on Denmark in the quarter-finals on Sunday evening.
While Arsenal are supposedly yet to make direct contact with Agoume or Sevilla, their interest in the former Inter Milan lynchpin is said to be ‘evident’, and they are ‘deeply interested’ in a summer swoop.
Agoume joined Sevilla on a permanent basis from Inter last summer after spending the second half of the 2023-24 season on loan, although the Spanish side apparently only own 60% of the midfielder’s rights and are working to secure the remaining 40%.
In a summer where a new striker, new left-winger and new goalkeeper are also being sought, Arsenal could have done without both of their number six options heading out on free transfers, but Partey’s demands seemingly proved too great.
The 32-year-old is thought to have wanted an increase on his weekly £200,000 wages to commit himself to fresh terms, which Arsenal were unsurprisingly not willing to agree to given his age and previous fitness record.
However, if the Gunners cannot bring in another number six to compete with and cover for Zubimendi, Arteta will have no choice but to shoe-horn others into that deep-lying role when the Spaniard is injured, suspended or simply rested.
Declan Rice is the obvious solution, but Arsenal would then lose the Englishman’s irreplaceable attacking qualities in the number eight role, which Mikel Merino is yet to replicate – at least not up front.
Myles Lewis-Skelly is another alternative, having worked his way up the youth system in midfield, while Ben White has previous in that position for Brighton & Hove Albion and could be an intriguing experiment in 2025-26.
