Arsenal showing an interest in 18-year-old defender but face competition from Sporting

Arsenal are showing an interest in Midtjylland defender Ousmane Diomande but will face competition from Sporting Lisbon. 

Since Mikel Arteta took over as Arsenal manager, the Spaniard and Edu Gaspar have targeted young talent around the world in their recruitment. Arteta appears to prefer to nurture and develop talent rather than sign ready-made world-class players and it’s certainly a strategy that’s worked so far.

With Arsenal sitting at the top of the Premier League, it’s difficult to argue with their philosophy of signing younger players.

Now, according to journalist Bruno Andrade, Arsenal are interested in signing Diomande, with Sporting already making an offer for the young defender.

Ousmane Diomandé está bem referenciado, mas caminha para ser "descartado" pelo Sporting. Midtjylland colocou um "preço não quero vender" pelo jovem central: cerca de 10 M€. Leões estão nos 5 M€. Há intereesados no futebol inglês, como o Arsenal

— Bruno Andrade (@brunoandrd) January 18, 2023

Diomande is an 18-year-old centre-back currently out on loan in the Portuguese second division and despite his young age is already a regular for Mafra.

It’s unlikely that a move for Diomande would see him come straight into the Arsenal first team due to his age and lack of experience at the top level, but signing this profile of player can often be as important as signing players capable of coming straight into the starting eleven.

The post Arsenal showing an interest in 18-year-old defender but face competition from Sporting appeared first on CaughtOffside.