Arsenal are considering an approach to sign Lille winger Edon Zhegrova as the club look to bring in competition and cover for Bukayo Saka.
Mikel Arteta wants to add depth to his forward options and a right-sided wide player is a focus for Arsenal to ease the burden on Saka. Zhegrova is a player Arsenal admire, according to Football Transfers, after a productive season in Ligue 1 for Lille.
The 25-year-old scored 12 times in all competitions and provided 10 assists for the French side in 2023-24 and led the division for successful take-ons.
A German-born Kosovo international, Zhegrova also ranked fifth in France’s top-flight for crosses, fourth for goal-creating actions and third for shots.
Lille signed Zhegrova from FC Basel for a fee of €7m in January 2022 and would expect to recoup a large profit on a player whose contract runs until 2026.
Zhegrova is viewed as an attainable option for Arsenal to improve their forward-line options, while links persist to fellow wingers Viktor Tsygankov, Johan Bakayoko and Nico Williams.
Mikel Arteta this week discussed Arsenal’s ambitions in the transfer market and told ESPN that the European Championship and Copa America are ‘slowing everything down’ in the window at present.
“We are looking to improve in every possible department. With the new regulations, there are certain things we have to respect and be conscious of and then obviously the Euros and Copa América are slowing everything down. Hopefully now it is going to pick up a little bit.
“I think both ways [players coming in and going out of the club]. There are things that we have to improve, that’s for sure and we are going to try to. But the market is tricky. We have been very aggressive, we are very determined and we have a clear idea obviously of what we want to do. It will come down to finding the right agreements at the right time.”
