Arsenal Transfer News: Edinson Cavani Bid Reportedly Sanctioned by Arsene Wenger

Arsene Wenger has reportedly given the green light for Arsenal to sign Paris Saint-Germain forward Edinson Cavani in a £55 million deal.

Spanish website Fichajes.net (via Metro) suggests Wenger "sanctioned the move this week" and that "senior Arsenal officials are now working on trying to do a deal with PSG."

Cavani has been linked with the Gunners for some time and could finally break free of what is turning out to be a nightmarish tenure with the French champions.

He continues to play in the shadow of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and hasn't regularly been afforded the opportunity to start in his preferred striking role by Laurent Blanc. Speaking to L'Equipe earlier this year (via Patrick Haond of Sky Sports), the Uruguayan suggested he was dissatisfied playing on the left side of the team's 4-3-3 formation.

In a later interview with L'Equipe (via James Andrew of the Daily Mail), he claimed he was content at the Parc des Princes.

More worrying than his work on the flank, Cavani has been unable to perform upfront during Ibrahimovic's recent spell on the sideline. The former Napoli striker appears devoid of confidence and made some bizarre errors during the recent 1-1 draw with Monaco, as described by Jonathan Johnson of ESPN FC:

Johnson also reported comments from Blanc, who believes his misfiring player can turn his PSG career around:

Football writer Alex Richards highlighted a frank response to Cavani's lack of form:

Wenger is certainly the type of manager who will look to capitalise on such a situation. He recently rescued Danny Welbeck from an eerily similar position at Manchester United, where he was pushed wide and forced away from satisfying his goalscoring instincts. Both players are workhorses, and Cavani can bring an added sense of physicality to Arsenal's attacking play, as we've seen with Welbeck.

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Cavani has scored four goals in 11 appearances across Ligue 1 and the Champions League this season, per WhoScored.com. Considering his obvious lack of confidence, this underlines what a prolific striker he can be when in form. He hit 78 in 104 Serie A appearances across three years with Napoli.

Many were important goals and aided the club's return to Champions League football, not to mention his influence in the 2012 Coppa Italia triumph. He is a natural leader when firing on all cylinders and is capable of setting the team's tempo by keeping busy in the opposition's half.

Despite Welbeck's appearance, Arsenal lacked a focal point during the recent 2-0 loss to Chelsea. The Englishman was anonymous until he should have been sent off for a lunging tackle on Cesc Fabregas. Welbeck showed great composure to score a hat-trick against Galatasaray, but he needs to net consistently and in important games before he can be deemed a vital ingredient of Wenger's squad.

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Cavani's arrival would pose plenty of questions. Would Wenger push Welbeck out wide, moving Mesut Ozil centrally with Cavani ahead? It's a possibility. Wenger is a few pieces short of a squad puzzle he often mangles together without letting the potential match-winners like Ozil play to their strengths.

It's debatable either way whether Cavani's arrival would fuel this analysis or quash it. If playing confidently, there's no doubt that PSG's perhaps unneeded player could become a figurehead of success at the Emirates. Ibrahimovic's presence has always quelled such thoughts in the French capital and is likely to do so for the foreseeable future.

Considering PSG are also struggling to meet UEFA's Financial Fair Play demands, it may be best for all parties involved if Cavani crosses the Channel with haste.