Arsenal Transfer News: Virgil Van Dijk Named Perfect Target, Winston Reid Eyed

Arsenal will target Celtic defender Virgil van Dijk as Arsene Wenger considers a move for a central defender to bolster his back four.

Jeremy Wilson of The Telegraph says the Gunners boss made a late move for the player in the previous transfer window but was unable to complete a deal with the Scottish club.

Ray Parlour of talkSPORT sees Van Dijk as "perfect" for the Emirates club, saying: "He would be a good signing, at the back they [Arsenal] are really short."

The Metro reports that the London club will submit a £7 million offer for the 23-year-old once the January transfer window opens. Celtic do not want to sell the Dutch player, but Van Dijk "will push for the transfer."

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The player joined the Scottish champions from FC Groningen in June 2013 and has greatly impressed.

Wenger admitted he failed to bring in a specific target in the summer and that he would try to rectify that soon, per Wilson:

"

I agree we could have bought one more player but we didn’t find. We will try in January to rectify that because we are a bit short because of the injuries we had. I think we will rectify that in the transfer market in January.

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Arsenal are also in the hunt for West Ham's Winston Reid, who is yet to sign a new deal with the Hammers.

Phil Cadden of the Daily Star writes that Sam Allardyce fears he will lose his highly rated defender on a free transfer, with the Gunners and Manchester United both monitoring the player's situation at Upton Park:

"

It is not only a concern for me, but it is a concern for the owners. There's been talk about Winston and his contract for a pretty long period now. It's not that he doesn't want to stay. It's about the financial remuneration and whether they can come to the right level, give or take or negotiation that gets us to a point where he will say, 'yes'.

That's always the hard bit. It's always a difficult negotiation. If we could tie him up tomorrow then I think the owners particularly and myself would like that and not have it lingering.

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Reid can open negotiations with foreign teams at the turn of the year as his contract expires next summer, but his Premier League performances have made him a target of England's biggest clubs.

Reid has played 72 times in the Premier League for the Hammers since 2010, per WhoScored.com, and he has vastly improved each season.

Both Van Dijk and Reid would be good signings for Wenger despite neither being classed as marquee players. However, Van Dijk would have to adapt to the quality of football in comparison to the level which is played north of the border.

Reid would be a more exciting capture. He has helped keep West Ham's head above water on many occasions and is arguably their most prized asset at present.

He has both technical and physical capabilities and would add a vitality to the Gunners defence.

If Arsenal do not sign a central defender in January, it is more than likely they will not compete for the biggest trophies. They have a host of brilliant attackers at the club, but they are fragile at the back, leading opponents to exploit their most obvious of weaknesses.