According to claims from French outlet Foot Mercato (h/t Daily Mail), Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has identified Lille ace Boubakary Soumare as an option to add more quality to the club’s midfield unit heading into the 2020/21 season.
Premier League rivals Man United have also been credited with an interest in the 21-year-old defensive midfielder, who is widely regarded as one of the hottest emerging prospects in the French top-flight. (Foot Mercato h/t Daily Mail)
Arsenal, though, are confident of using their healthy working relationship with Lille to strike a deal for Soumare in the coming weeks. The Gunners spent a club-record £72million to sign Nicolas Pepe last summer and are on the verge of sealing a move for centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes.
Born in Noisy-le-Sec, France, to parents of Senegalese descent, Boubakary Soumare rose through the youth ranks of Paris Saint-Germain before joining domestic rivals Lille in 2017 in search of a quicker route to first-team football.
The 21-year-old only played a bit-part role in his first couple of seasons at the club but managed to establish himself as a regular starter during the Covid-curtailed 2019-20 Ligue 1 campaign. Soumare featured 20 times last term as Lille finished 4th in the French top-flight and qualified for the Europa League.
The French U-21 international also started each of Lille’s six games in the group stages of the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League. Christophe Galtier’s side finished bottom of the group but Soumare more than held his own in front of more experienced players in Europe’s elite club competition.
The Gunners currently aren’t short of cover in the middle of the park but things are expected to change in the coming weeks. Lucas Torreira has been heavily linked with a move to AC Milan this summer while Matteo Guendouzi is also likely to be sold by the club after falling out with Arteta over his sending off against Brighton.
Dani Ceballos impressed over the course of his loan spell from Real Madrid last term but it’s still unclear whether the Spaniard will join the club on a permanent deal.
Hence, a couple of departures in quick succession would certainly render Arsenal short of quality cover in midfield.
To put things into perspective, Arsenal will need to look at alternatives in the market if they end up cashing in on the likes of Torreira and Guendouzi this summer. A box-to-box midfielder who is also capable of playing in a deeper defensive role, Boubakary Soumare presents a long-term option for the Gunners given his tender age and big potential.
Arsenal need to find an ideal partner for Granit Xhaka in the middle. With Arteta at the helm, the Gunners seem to be operating under a long-term strategy and the French youth international still has his best years ahead of him considering his young age.
Arsenal need to back Arteta with the right kind of players this summer to allow the Spaniard to build a squad in his own image. The manager hasn’t been afraid to rely on youngsters since taking charge, which is something that the fans will surely want to see more of in the coming days.
Boubakary Soumare could be a fantastic addition to the existing pool of young talents at the club. This is a deal that Arsenal must definitely look to conclude before the deadline in October.