Charles Watts, the Arsenal correspondent for Goal, has been discussing the transfer business he believes the club are looking to do during this transfer window during a recent YouTube video.
The journalist spoke of Mikel Arteta’s midfield targets in particular, and although it is widely reported that Thomas Partey and Houssem Aouar are the two players the north London club are most interested in, he was asked if the club had any alternative targets should they fail to land either of the aforementioned players.
One of the players Watts mentioned was FC Porto captain Danilo Pereira, a Portuguese international who plays as a defensive midfielder. Here is what was said regarding the 29-year-old.
“I know that [Danilo] Pereira at Porto is a player that Arsenal have been interested in and [there] have been initial discussions with [his] representatives. There has been obviously no bid or anything like that, but he is a potential backup option for Thomas Partey.”
Are you confident the club will land Thomas Partey?
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So according to the Arsenal correspondent, Pereira is somebody the Gunners have on their radar in the event they are unable to land Partey this summer. The midfielder, according to Transfermarkt, is currently valued at £21.6m.
Last season, he made a total of 26 appearances in Liga NOS and according to WhoScored.com, his average performance rating was a solid 6.98/10. As per the reports, Atletico Madrid are still demanding Thomas Partey’s €50m (£46m) release clause be met and with Arsenal seemingly yet to table a sufficient offer, it could be that they turn their attention fully towards the Porto man before the window closes on October 5.