Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has set his sights of signing Barcelona midfielder Rafinha Alcantara during the summer transfer window. The Brazilian footballer has had limited playing time at Barcelona since his first-team debut six years ago.
Rafinha, 24, has never really made himself a regular at Camp Nou, and he is prepared to move on like his elder sibling Thiago, who left for Bayern Munich in the summer of 2013.
Spanish outlet Don Balon suggests that the Gunners boss is lining up a move for Rafinha this summer as he looks to further shore up his midfield.
Wenger’s existing deal is due to expire at the end of the campaign, but if we are to go by the report, he could be staying for a couple of season’s with a string of players including Florian Lejeune and Kylian Mbappe being tracked by Gunners scouts.
Rafinha has the ability of feature anywhere in the attack having played for Barcelona on the right wing, left wing and at times in the centre of the park. He is contracted until 2020 at Barcelona and is said it would take an offer of around £20 million for the Spanish champions to do any business.
He has also been deployed as a right-sided defender with the departing Luis Enrique yet to find a suitable player to fill the void left by Dani Alves last summer.
Arsenal have lacked the lack of zest in their midfield this campaign, and it appears that a move for Rafinha could, in turn, affect the future of Santi Cazorla, whose contract is due to expire in the summer.
Barring a few standout performances here and there, Cazorla has entered the ‘Abou Diaby’ bandwagon, and his Achilles problem has hindered his playing time over the past 24 months.
Wenger has seen his side impress since the switch to the 4-3-3 formation, but there is still the need for a new central midfielder despite Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Granit Xhaka cementing their roles in recent weeks.
Aaron Ramsey is the other who has featured as part of the midfield three, but his calf problems need to come to an end if he is to establish himself as a regular starter.
The north London club won’t be the sole club interested in Rafinha this summer with Real Madrid, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund also being credited with an interest in the Sao Paulo-born ace.
Rafinha has turned out in just 46 La Liga outings for Barcelona over the course of his professional career.
