Arsenal Transfer News: Jeremy Mathieu Enquiry Made, Latest Gunners Rumours

Arsenal have reportedly made contact with Barcelona regarding Jeremy Mathieu over a possible move this summer.

According to N. Vilas of French TV station SFR Sport (h/t Metro's Tom Olver), the Gunners are targeting an experienced centre-back as they look to ease their defensive crisis, prompting them to get in touch with the Blaugrana regarding the Frenchman's availability, though Besiktas are also thought to be interested.

He joined Valencia in 2009 before moving to Barca two seasons ago. OptaCan provided a look at the numbers he's put down in that time:

The Frenchman can play centrally or on the left if needed, but during his time at the Camp Nou, he's often proved to be erratic and somewhat unreliable.

Football journalist Rafael Hernandez believes he is a defensive liability:

The defender's time at the Camp Nou could be coming to an end, with the addition of Samuel Umititi pushing him down the pecking order.

Arsenal are in desperate need of reinforcements, but with Per Mertesacker and Gabriel Paulista failing to convince, the player they bring in this summer will ideally be an assured, long-term partner for Laurent Koscielny.

Mathieu may be experienced enough to slot in straight away, but between his age and his tendency to make costly errors at the back, he'd be a short-term purchase and most likely not a particularly good one.

Arsenal would be wise to steer clear of the Frenchman.

Arisson Marinho/Associated Press

Meanwhile, RB Leipzig sporting director Ralf Rangnick has rejected reports that Arsenal had made an approach for right-back Lukas Klostermann.

Stefan Krause of German outlet Bild (h/t James Cambridge of the Express) had reported that the Gunners had made their interest in Klostermann known to the club, but Rangnick told Kicker (via Cambridge): "For us there is no association [with Arsenal] as has been reported. We will definitely not be selling Lukas."

The 20-year-old is on duty for his country at the 2016 Rio Olympics and is yet to play at a higher level than the German second-tier.