Quantcast

Arsenal eye swoop to sign Sporting star Ousmane Diomande

By on November 21, 2024

Ousmane Diomande

Arsenal are reportedly considering making a move to sign Sporting CP star Ousmane Diomande, as per Spanish outlet Fichajes.

The Gunners are currently well-stocked in their centre-back position as William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes are the first-choice pairing for Mikel Arteta. After them, Ben White, Jurrien Timber, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Jakub Kiwior and Riccardo Calafiori are all capable of playing the CB role if needed.

However, Kiwior has found it difficult to play regularly at the Emirates Stadium and has been linked with a move away from the club. On the other hand, Tomiyasu has struggled with injury problems in recent years so the North London club could do with signing an upgrade to them.

Now, Fichajes states that Arsenal are interested in Diomande and they could make a concrete approach to lure him to the Emirates Stadium next year.

The player has a £67m release clause in his current contract but the Portuguese giants won’t allow him to leave in January and would be more open to cashing-in on him ahead of next season.

Diomande to Arsenal

However, the report says Manchester City, Chelsea and Newcastle United are also in this race. Moreover, Manchester United are keen on signing him as well and they are the frontrunners in this race due to the Ruben Amorim connection.

The 39-year-old boss enjoyed great success at Jose Alvalade Stadium and after being impressed by his displays for Sporting, United decided to hire him to replace Erik ten Hag. So, Arsenal will have to put in their best efforts to beat the record Premier League champions in this race.

Arsenal hold a long-term interest in the Ivory Coast international as they were linked with a move for him in the previous transfer windows. But, they never made a concrete approach to secure his service.

Diomande has already enjoyed great success at a very young age as he won the league title with Sporting last term and lifted the AFCON with Ivory Coast earlier this year.

The youngster, standing at 6ft 3in tall, is a talented player and could be a shrewd acquisition for Arsenal with a view to the long-term future if they eventually manage to purchase him.