Arsenal Transfer News: Latest on Robert Lewandowski and Medhi Benatia Rumours

Arsenal are reportedly ready to launch an ambitious swoop for Bayern Munich forward Robert Lewandowski should the striker decide to leave the German champions.

That’s according to Steve Stammers of the Sunday Mirror, who has reported manager Arsene Wenger has a whopping £150 million to spend on new players in the summer. Bayern are said to value the forward, who recently hinted he’d be keen on playing in the Premier League one day to France Football (h/t Ben Nagle of Sky Sports), at £50 million.

Given Lewandowski’s pedigree, there’s no doubt his signing would be a massive coup for the Gunners. Here are some of his best moments from another stunning term in Germany:

The 27-year-old is a natural centre-forward blessed with so many attributes. Of course, his goalscoring means he captures a lot of headlines, but there’s so much more to Lewandowski than his finishing. He’s a graceful striker with an elegant dribbling style and wonderful feel for the football.

The point of the attack has long been an area of concern for the Gunners, with supporters miffed with Wenger’s reluctance to replenish the position. Indeed, as we can see here, courtesy of Bleacher Report UK, Olivier Giroud, usually Arsenal’s most reliable goalscorer, has been having a difficult time as of late:

The Gunners have come up short in a lot of tight games as a result. For all the good football the team plays, in some Premier League matches, a scrappy goal or a sharp reaction in the area is needed to get over the line. Wenger doesn’t have a player who could swing precariously poised tussles the way of his side.

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Lewandowski could offer that edge. As these numbers illustrate, the striker has been part of a potent attacking setup at the Allianz Arena this term:

It’s be a big surprise if Bayern were to let Lewandowski go, though. Manager Pep Guardiola is leaving this summer, and the man replacing him, Carlo Ancelotti, will surely want to keep the core of this successful side intact. Losing a player as decisive as the No. 9 would make things much harder for the Italian.

Medhi Benatia Discusses Future, Arsenal Linked

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According to the Daily Star Sunday, Arsenal want to sign Bayern Munich centre-back Medhi Benatia to help solve their defensive problems.

As noted in the piece, Bayern have been strongly linked with a move for Borussia Dortmund’s Mats Hummels, a signing that would potentially push Benatia down the pecking order at the Allianz Arena. Wenger, it’s stated, wanted to sign the Morocco international two seasons ago and could move for him again.

The man himself has admitted he could be on the move too. “In my case, if I have to leave Bayern at the end of this season, then I will leave,” he told Sky Sport Italia (h/t Sacha Pisani of Goal). “I will not do it like the managerial staff, who spoke about transfer rumours before an important game like the semi-finals of the [UEFA] Champions league [against Atletico Madrid].”

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Here is how Benatia has fared in comparison to Arsenal’s regular starting centre-backs, Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker, in the Premier League this season:

	Benatia	Koscielny	Mertesacker
Apps (Sub)	10 (2)	31	24
Goals	1	4	0
Tackles per game	1.3	1.5	1.1
Interceptions per game	2.7	3.8	1.5
Clearances per game	1.9	5.5	4.5
Blocks per game	0.2	0.8	0.4
Passing accuracy	90.4 %	87.2 %	89.3 %

The former Roma star is a cracking defender at his best. Benatia is an extremely physical player, a trait that would suggest he could cope in English football. Additionally, he is a dynamic tackler, powerful in the air and a capable distributor.

Here’s a look at the defender in action:

It’s evident from the aforementioned quotes the 29-year-old is already weighing up his options, and if Hummels were to come in, you’d anticipate the German would be starting matches alongside Jerome Boateng at centre-back.

If Arsenal can capitalise on this situation, they should. The centre-back positions often look solid for the Gunners, but there’s always been a sense they can be a little brittle under sustained pressure and could be upgraded. Benatia, one of the finest defenders around during his spell with Roma in 2013/14, would enrich this vital facet of the squad.