Barcelona have Arsenal’s Thomas Partey on their radar, with the midfielder out of contract at the end of the season.
The 31-year-old has been with the Gunners since 2020 when he signed from Atletico Madrid, but his current deal is now nearing an end.
The Ghanaian remains a regular in Mikel Arteta’s first team, making 17 Premier League appearances so far this campaign, with 14 of those coming in the starting XI.
Partey has also started all six of Arsenal’s Champions League games, illustrating how highly Arteta still regards the combative midfielder.
Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo report that Barcelona also hold Partey in high esteem and have his name on their list of summer transfer targets.
The Catalan giants remain in a dire financial situation, so will likely be limited to free transfer deals in 2025, with Partey a standout candidate if he does not sign a new contract in north London.
The report states that Barca are considering selling Frenkie de Jong at the end of the season and have identified Partey as a candidate to replace the Dutchman for no transfer fee.
The report from Spain does also note that Arsenal are keen to keep hold of the Ghana international and Arteta has hinted that he wants Partey to stay put.
Speaking about his midfielder’s contract last month, the Spaniard said: ‘We will have the right time to discuss about the situation.
‘He is showing consistency at the highest level, again because his availability and the way that he feels physically is allowing him to do that, and I am very pleased with that.’
If Arsenal want to secure his future then they may well have to do it soon as players who are out of contract in the summer will be able to negotiate with clubs from abroad from the start of January.
Also in the final few months of their contracts with Arsenal are Jorginho and Kieran Tierney.
The Scot is expected to leave, but the Italian international’s future is less clear, with the 33-year-old playing a bit-part role for the Gunners, but Arteta a big fan of his input.
When Jorginho signed his last contract extension in May, Arteta said: ‘Jorgi is such an important part of our team. A role model with great leadership skills and a unique playing style ability, which makes everybody better around him on the pitch.’