Arsenal Transfer News: Granit Xhaka Race Won, Latest Henrikh Mkhitaryan Rumours

Arsenal have reportedly won the race to sign Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Granit Xhaka, while the agent of Borussia Dortmund star Henrikh Mkhitaryan is in Turin to discuss his client with Juventus.

According to German daily Bild (h/t Daily Mirror's Aaron Flanagan), the Gunners are now in pole position to sign Xhaka, who has long been touted as a transfer target for the club. Rumours of a £35 million move have been swirling for weeks, and it is now claimed manager Arsene Wenger is “likely” to land the Swiss international.

The same newspaper previously reported Wenger had met with the player's father, via Sport Witness:

The 23-year-old has been with Monchengladbach since 2012, when he moved to the Bundesliga from Swiss giants FC Basel. He has steadily improved as a player and entered the 2015-16 season with plenty of hype after a wonderful 2014-15 campaign.

Per WhoScored.com, he has more than lived up to the hype:

Mainly known as a bruising defensive midfielder when he left Basel, Xhaka has added much to his skill set, and after several seasons with Monchengladbach, he now looks like a well-rounded, versatile playmaker who can hold his own defensively and distribute the ball with ease.

Comparisons to Bastian Schweinsteiger and Sami Khedira are never far off, but Xhaka is his own man. He can play all over central midfield, and while he does his best work when paired with a defensive-minded player―like Francis Coquelin―there are few limitations to how he can be used tactically.

Bleacher Report UK's Clark Whitney thinks he's exactly the kind of player Wenger needed:

And while he's not known as a scorer, he has netted some important goals during his time in Germany, including this derby winner against FC Koln:

While fans should be cautious not to get too carried away with transfer rumours, there have been so many links between Xhaka and Arsenal, one has to assume a deal is close.

Per Tor Fabrik (h/t Vaishali Bhardwaj of the London Evening Standard), he has already joked about forcing Coquelin to change his jersey number when he arrives. The Frenchman currently graces the Emirates Stadium pitch wearing No. 34―a number Xhaka has tattooed on his back.

Xhaka would be a perfect replacement for Santi Cazorla, Arsenal's Spanish dynamo who has missed large portions of the 2015-16 campaign. Per Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wilson, no Gunner has been able to adequately fill his role:

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The issue is in part positional. Aaron Ramsey has a preference for charging forward; he is a box-to-box player as opposed to a deep-lying holder. When he plays alongside Coquelin, the Frenchman can be left isolated. Play Mathieu Flamini alongside him, though, and the result is too negative; there isn’t sufficient creativity from the central positions. Mikel Arteta, sadly, looks too old for the Premier League.

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Xhaka could replace Cazorla immediately upon signing, or Wenger could use him alongside the Spanish veteran―the Swiss international is so versatile, it wouldn't be hard to find a spot for him in the team.

Meanwhile, Mino Raiola, the Italian super agent who represents some of football's most wanted stars, like Everton's Romelu Lukaku and Juventus' Paul Pogba, reportedly had lunch with the Bianconeri. According to David Amoyal, a translator for Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, one of the players discussed was Arsenal target Mkhitaryan.

The Armenia international has played a key role in Dortmund's strong run in the UEFA Europa League and has been incredibly productive across all competitions, per the tournament's official Twitter account:

According to Amoyal, Dortmund have offered the 27-year-old a “significant” contract extension, and in all likelihood, Die Schwarzgelben will fight tooth and nail to keep him at the club. Mkhitaryan is finally making good on the potential he showed with Shakhtar Donetsk―it would be a shame for Dortmund to lose him now after he struggled in his first years at the Signal Iduna Park.

Arsenal don't have a clear need for another attacking midfielder or winger, but when a player of Mkhitaryan's calibre becomes available, top clubs will pounce, whether they need his services or not. The Armenian's form has been too good to ignore, and Wenger will likely keep an eye on the situation. 

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