Arsenal are set to rival their bitter enemies Tottenham Hotspur for Inter Milan star Lautaro Martinez.
The Gunners went toe to toe with their north London neighbours last summer for the Argentinian, only for him to sign a new deal at the San Siro. Both team were eyeing up potential replacements for their talismanic forwards – Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Harry Kane respectively.
While Kane remained, however, Aubameyang left in January for Barcelona. The England captain could yet depart the Lilywhites, with Mauricio Pochettino keen to take his former star to Manchester United, should he get the job this summer. Both north Londoners would reportedly return to Martinez.
According to Calciomercato, the Gunners are set to rekindle their interest in the 24-year-old, who featured against Liverpool in the Nerazzurri's 2-0 defeat in the Champions League last night.
Arteta has a number of players on his shortlist, however. Jonathan David of Lille, Alexander Isak of Real Sociedad and Dominic Calvert-Lewin of Everton have all been touted in recent weeks and months.
Tottenham, meanwhile, could be set for a summer of upheaval. Manager Antonio Conte came out this week to say that the club had actually weakened the squad with their January business – and with Kane potentially on the move, Spurs may well reinvest.
Lautaro Martinez is valued at £72m by Transfermarkt.
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Mark White has been a staff writer on FourFourTwo since joining in January 2020, writing pieces for both online and the magazine. Over his time on the brand, he has interviewed the likes of Aaron Ramsdale and Jack Wilshere, written pieces ranging on subjects from Bobby Robson's season at Barcelona to Robinho's career, and has been to the FA Cup and League Cup finals, working for FFT.
