Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta loves loading up on top class defenders. He has signed Riccardo Calafiori, Cristhian Mosquera, and Piero Hincapie in recent seasons, and he has an established Premier League player on his transfer radar now, too.
According to a report from the Daily Telegraph’s Matt Law, via afcstuff, the defending Premier League champions want to steal away Ezri Konsa from Aston Villa this summer.
The 28 year old England international is likely to cost 60 million pounds due to his importance to Villa, who are back to the Champions League, and like previous midfield transfer target Sandro Tonali, who joined rivals Tottenham Hotspur recently for 100 million pounds, Konsa is likely to end up costing more than what Arsenal are willing to pay.
Arsenal have kept Piero Hincapie and Riccardo Calafiori despite Real Madrid’s transfer interest, but when Mikel Arteta pushes for a big transfer in defense, he does tend to get what he wants.
So if Arsenal can manage to get former manager Unai Emery and his team to lower the price, Konsa could make sense as another shut down defensive right back. But Arsenal have bigger priorities to spend 60 million pounds on, with another midfielder and a new left winger – and potentially even another striker – being on the list of possible summer 2026 transfers for the English champions.
Joe Soriano is the editor of The Trivela Effect and a FanSided Hall of Famer who has covered world football since 2010. He’s led top digital communities like The Real Champs (Real Madrid) and has run sites covering Tottenham, Liverpool, Juventus, and Schalke. He also helped manage NFL Spin Zone and Daily DDT, covering the NFL and pro wrestling.