Jhon Duran has been linked with Arsenal(Image: Gabriel Aponte/Getty Images)

Arsenal 'target' £75m Premier League striker amid honest transfer admission

23 Oct 2024, 03:00 by Mark Wakefield · football.london

Arsenal will be looking ahead to their return to Premier League action this weekend following an evening in the Champions League.

The Gunners beat Shakhtar Donetsk 1-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday night to follow on from their draw with Atalanta and win over Paris Saint-Germain in their previous two fixtures of the competition.

Mikel Arteta's side will now prepare to face Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday in a game that could prove decisive in the title race. Arsenal were beaten by Bournemouth at the weekend and are four points behind leaders Liverpool, who beat Chelsea in their last top flight fixture.

The Gunners may have to go into that top-of-the-table clash against the Merseyside club without Bukayo Saka, who missed Tuesday night's match versus Shakhtar Donetsk with a hamstring injury. Here, football.london takes a look at some of the top Arsenal stories that have made the news over the last 24 hours.

Arsenal 'target Aston Villa striker

Arsenal are being linked with a move for Aston Villa striker Jhon Duran. According to AS Colombia, the Gunners have registered an interest in signing Duran in the January transfer window.

The report claims that Arsenal will face competition from Barcelona and Manchester United for the Colombia international, who has scored six goals for Villa so far this season. However, the report claims that the Villa Park club would demand a minimum fee of €90million (£75million) before considering allowing Duran to leave the club in January.

football.london says: Arsenal were heavily linked with signing a striker during the summer, and it would come as no surprise if the position is still an area in need of strengthening ahead of the New Year.

Duran was reportedly a target for Chelsea during the summer but has remained at Villa, where he impressed in the early weeks of the season. If the striker continues that form until January, then it would be a surprise if clubs, including Arsenal, are not at least showing an interest in his services.

Joshua Kimmich stance

Bayern Munich midfielder Joshua Kimmich has addressed speculation surrounding his future amid Arsenal links.

The Gunners were credited with an interest in signing Kimmich in the summer, with Barcelona also supposedly in the running.

Kimmich's future at Bayern has been the subject of speculation, although recent updates have suggested that he could be moving closer to signing a new contract with the Bundesliga giants.

"In football, you can never make the mistake of ruling out possibilities," Kimmich told reporters on Tuesday when asked about his future, specifically the possibility of signing for Barcelona.

"Now, to answer directly, I'm not thinking about it at this moment, but in football, you should never rule anything out."

football.london says: Kimmich was tentatively linked with a move to Arsenal during the summer, but the majority of the reports have always suggested that Barcelona would be his most likely destination if he was to leave Bayern. After the signing of Mikel Merino, the Gunners did not seem likely to dip into the market for further midfield reinforcements.

That being said, if the possibility of signing a player of Kimmich's ability does become an option, the Gunners would be wise to, at the very least, give it some consideration.

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