
Arsenal
Premier League • England
Fabrizio Romano rates Arsenal chances of triple midfielder swoop as Bayern join race for long-term target

Fabrizio Romano has confirmed Arsenal's admiration of Martin Zubimendi, Amadou Onana and Douglas Luiz
Arsenal have been heavily linked with Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi in recent days, drawing a response from Fabrizio Romano.
After the club-record purchase of Declan Rice from West Ham United in the summer, there is an expectation that Arsenal will invest in their midfield again this year.
Rice effectively replaced Bayer Leverkusen signing Granit Xhaka, but the likes of Thomas Partey, Jorginho and Mohamed Elneny could move on this year to open up new vacancies in the Arsenal engine room.
One player who could fill the void is Zubimendi, who has progressed through the ranks with Real Sociedad and is now a key player there (and at full international level with Spain) by the age of 24.
Zubimendi remains under contract until 2027 in San Sebastian, but AS recently claimed he had agreed to join Arsenal in the summer already.
While Romano has dialled down the level of speculation, he has confirmed that Zubimendi is someone strongly admired by Arsenal, along with two alternatives who are already playing in the Premier League.
Romano wrote for Caught Offside: “My understanding remains that nothing is decided yet.
“Zubimendi is one of the players on Arsenal’s list since last year, but the same is true for Amadou Onana and Douglas Luiz, who remain appreciated at the Emirates Stadium, so the story is absolutely open.
“It’s also important to note that Bayern Munich and Barcelona are also closely following Zubimendi, who remains very happy at [Real] Sociedad and focused on their goals for this season, so nothing has been decided yet with Arsenal or any other club, let’s see what happens in the summer.”
Zubimendi has played in 30 matches for Real Sociedad this season, scoring four goals (all from open play) and adding an assist.
In comparison, the 25-year-old Douglas Luiz has made the same number of appearances for Aston Villa, with seven goals (five of which have been penalties) and six assists.
Meanwhile, Everton’s Onana, 22, has featured in 23 games, scored two goals and made a single assist.
Competition increasing for Zubimendi
As Romano has alluded to, Arsenal are unlikely to be the only suitors for any of the three midfielders they admire.
Barcelona were already established as contenders to keep Zubimendi in La Liga, while Bayern have now joined the race to take him to the Bundesliga instead.
It is not yet clear what size of transfer bid could tempt Real Sociedad to sell Zubimendi, who has a total of 173 appearances to his name for his current club.
In theory, the prospect of multiple clubs queuing up for his signature could lead to a bidding war.
There is, though, believed to be a £52m (€60m) release clause in his contract, which would effectively put the decision in the player’s hands depending on who meets that value.
For now, Zubimendi wants to continue the campaign with Real Sociedad, who have reached the knockout phase of the Champions League.
In the summer, though, his future could be all to play for.