Arsenal Transfer News: Baggies Reportedly Set Price for Jonny Evans, Top Rumours

Arsenal will reportedly have to pay at least £27 million to sign West Bromwich Albion centre-back Jonny Evans. The Gunners are yet to agree a fee, while the Baggies are holding out for increased offers before the end of the January transfer window, per The Sun's Duncan Wright.

His report revealed Arsenal have already put forward a bid of close to £25 million for a player manager Arsene Wenger views "as the ideal man to bring composure to his faltering defence at the Emirates."

Wright also pointed out how the Baggies are "keen to get the majority of money up front rather than in staggered payments."

The chances of the Gunners eventually being able to secure a deal for Evans remain decent since West Brom won't be able to spend this month until they cash in, per the Press Association (h/t the Daily Mail), with "Arsenal the most likely destination as Manchester City are targeting Athletic Bilbao's Aymeric Laporte."

While the Gunners are thought to have offered close to £25 million, other reports have a different interpretation. The Daily Star's Paul Brown reported Wenger thinks a bid of £10 million plus right-back Mathieu Debuchy is more than reasonable for a 30-year-old.

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West Brom manager Alan Pardew's response to even the idea of this offer has been lukewarm to say the least. In fact, the 56-year-old has denied the bid altogether, per James Cambridge of the Daily Express: "That is not a deal we would be interested in and it's not a deal that has been put to us either. That's just paper talk or somebody has released that and that's not true."

Resolving their interest in Evans will likely take time for the Gunners, with John Cross of the Daily Mirror saying any deal will have to wait for the outcome of the club's pursuit of Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

While Aubameyang would add more firepower to an already talented forward line, Evans would offer an instant upgrade at a more problematic position. Arsenal's defence is short of dependable quality in the middle, with Laurent Koscielny more susceptible to injury and Shkodran Mustafi inconsistent.

Per Mertesacker is 33 and headed for retirement, while Wenger appears to lack confidence in either Rob Holding or Calum Chambers as regular members of the starting XI. This has led to the Gunners converting left-back Nacho Monreal into a central defender and even playing midfielder Mohamed Elneny at the back.

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Given how often Wenger now likes to play three centre-backs, his squad needs a defender with Evans' experience and ability to read the game. Even though he's 30, the former Manchester United man is comfortable with the physical nature of the Premier League, as well as being a steady influence—something Arsenal's defence lacks.

Wenger won't find many centre-backs with these qualities available during the winter transfer window. He would be wise to pay what it takes to finally fortify a suspect back line, even if it means sticking with what he has up front.