Arsenal turn to £53m Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti with club captain Koscielny set for exit
ARSENAL are reportedly set to allow Laurent Koscielny to leave this summer and replace him with Barcelona’s Samuel Umtiti.
The French international has been restricted to just 27 appearances for the Gunners after suffering a number of injury woes throughout the campaign.
Now L’Equipe claim the 33-year-old defender “is looking for a new challenge” and next week’s Europa League Final against Chelsea will be his last match for the club.
And they go on to say he will “especially” push for a transfer away if they fail to overcome the Blues and miss out on Champions League football next season.
The French publication also state Unai Emery knows the man he wants to fill the void – the veteran’s international team-mate Umtiti.
The Barca centre-back, 25, has allegedly been made available by the La Liga champions.
And an offer of £52.9m would be enough for Arsenal to open negations with the star.
L’Equipe’s report states: “Coach Unai Emery and football director Raul Sanllehi, a former FC Barcelona boss, are considering attracting Samuel Umtiti.”
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Despite his age, Koscielny still feels he has “two or three more seasons” at the top level.
He has held talks with the Gunners over a new contract but no progress has been made towards an agreement.
And with Arsenal no longer appearing to be pushing hard for him to stay, today’s claims says an Emirates exit is becoming “more and more tempting” for Koscielny.