Asier Illarramendi Transfer Rumours: Arsenal Desperate to Land Liverpool Target

The signing of Lucas Silva from Cruzeiro has seemingly shunted Asier Illarramendi even further down the pecking order at Real Madrid, but that could be good news for Arsenal, who are apparently doing everything possible to beat Liverpool to the young midfielder.

As noted by Jamie Sanderson of Metro.co.uk, Fichajes.net reports the Gunners will be “going all out” to beat the Reds to the signature of the 24-year-old playmaker. According to El Confidencial (h/t Simon Osborn of Metro.co.uk) the Anfield club is willing to part with £18 million to bring the Basque star to Merseyside.

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Here’s a look at what Arsenal would be getting for that kind of money:

It’s easy to see why Arsenal are interested in the Spanish international too. Arsene Wenger’s side has had a longtime scarcity of options at the base of its midfield, and it’s an area of the team that the Gunners boss is apparently looking to address in earnest in the summer, per Rob Draper of the MailOnline.

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Illarramendi is a fine player too, something that seems to have been forgotten after his recession into obscurity at the Santiago Bernabeu. When he penned a deal for Los Blancos, it was on the back of a stunning 2012/13 season for Real Sociedad, and in the eyes of many, he was the natural heir to Xabi Alonso.

Sadly, it’s not worked out for the midfielder since making that transfer, and David Cartlidge of the Mirror thinks the player needs a move as soon as possible:

As noted in Sanderson’s piece, Illarramendi has turned down the chance of a loan move in January, but it’s surely a case of now or never for the former Sociedad man. If he can’t fashion a starting spot in the final knockings of this season, then he simply has to move, and Arsenal would be an ideal destination for him.

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Indeed, Lee Roden of FourFourTwo thinks the player should have already left the European champions:

With Liverpool—tasked with replacing Steven Gerrard this summer—also interested, the Gunners may have to fight tooth and nail to land him. But for a fee of circa £18 million, they’d be getting a player who is a quality operator with potential to improve and harbouring what would surely be an eminent hunger to show what he can do.