Arsenal and Atletico Madrid could actually become fairly entwined in this summer’s transfer window.
First of all, Arsenal are close to welcoming former Atletico mastermind Andrea Berta to the club as their new sporting director.
Berta brokered groundbreaking deals for several years for Atletico in Spain, success he’ll now be hoping to bring to north London.
In addition, Atletico are interested in signing Albert Sambi Lokonga according to reports in Spain.
And perhaps if that admiration results in a move, Arsenal might sign an Atletico midfielder in return – there’s a lot of links between the two clubs.
Atletico Madrid want to steal Joan Garcia away from Arsenal
That being said, Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo are now reporting that Atletico are interested in Espanyol keeper Joan Garcia.
Garcia is Arsenal’s number one target in goal – and the Gunners actually made a move for the 23-year-old at the end of last summer when they instead pivoted to a last-minute loan for experienced Bournemouth campaigner Neto.
READ MORE: Arsenal are in ‘concrete talks’ to sign 23-goal striker who’s desperate to move to England
But when the Brazilian returns to Bournemouth this summer, Arsenal want Garcia.
Unfortunately for the Gunners, Garcia seems even more difficult to sign one year after their initial attempts.
Garcia is excelling in La Liga after being promoted with Espanyol, and as the report mentioned explains, Atletico are now interested in bringing in the keeper as Jan Oblak’s long-term replacement.
Diego Simeone personally wants to sign Garcia, meaning it might become increasingly hard for Mikel Arteta to bring his compatriot to north London.
Mikel Arteta might struggle to land his first-choice target
Fortunately, Arsenal have found a Garcia alternative but the club will surely still be hoping that Berta can use his expertise of the Spanish market to bring the keeper to N5.
The difficulty will be convincing the Spaniard to arrive as David Raya’s number two, who is showing no signs of being replaced in the near future.
Bournemouth want Garcia themselves this summer and it would be understandable if a guaranteed number one spot would be more appealing, albeit it at a club with slightly lessened expectations.
Of course, Berta has recommended one former Atletico player to Arsenal, demonstrating just how entangled the two’s summers could be.
But in terms of who wins the race for Garcia, Arsenal would be understandably disappointed to miss out on one of the best young goalkeepers in world football.
