Arsenal are ready to say goodbye to reliable midfielder Mathieu Flamini in the summer. But the Gunners could bolster their options in the middle before then, with a winter move for Inter Milan‘s Marcelo Brozovic.

Arsenal need solidity and numbers in midfield to boost their challenge for this season’s Premier League title. At the moment, the burden is on Flamini while the normal central pairing, Santi Cazorla and Francis Coquelin, nurse long-term injuries.

In fairness to Flamini, the 31-year-old has answered the call. He’s used his typical tenacity and energy to provide a vital physical presence alongside the forward-thinking Aaron Ramsey.

But it seems the Gunners aren’t keen on carrying the Frenchman’s £80,000 per week wages beyond next summer, according to Mirror writer John Cross. He reveals how Flamini is one of three veteran midfielders, along with Mikel Arteta and Tomas Rosicky, who are out of contract at the end of this season.

Of the three, Flamini has the unique distinction of never having lost a league game at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, per Cross: He “has never finished on the losing side in the 52 Premier League games he has played at the Emirates, winning 36 of them.”

Flamini has proved useful since Gunners chief Arsene Wenger gave him a second stint with Arsenal back in the summer of 2013. But as Cross points out, Wenger is keen on a full-scale revamp of his midfield “in January—and again in the summer.”

Part of his plan could involve taking one of Serie A’s most intriguing talents during the January transfer window.

 

Arsenal Begin Talks to Sign Marcelo Brozovic

The Gunners have started talks with Inter over a deal for Brozovic, according to Italian source TuttoMercatoWeb (h/t Daily Express writer Charlie Phillippe). The report claims the Milan side is willing to sell the player also wanted by Arsenal’s Premier League rivals Chelsea, but that the talks are yet to bear fruit:

Roberto Mancini is willing to let the Brozovic leave in January, with the 23-year-old only featuring 13 times this term.

Inter paid £5million to sign the Croatian from Dinamo Zagreb in January on a loan deal until June 2017, but his valuation has more than trebled since then.

Discussions between the two clubs are still in the early stages and a deal is not thought to be close.

More scepticism about the deal comes from Sport Witness‘ Tom Coast. The issue concerns Inter’s full ownership or lack thereof, of the player: “The Serie A side loaned the player for 18 months last January, and still need to pay the Croatian club the €3 million loan fee, as well as the €5 million clause to make the deal permanent if they so wish.”

The Croatian club in question is Dinamo Zagreb.

Coast states Inter could want as much as €25 million from the Gunners next month, assuming they can wrap things up with Dinamo. That’s a hefty fee, despite Arsenal’s obvious need.

Brozovic is certainly a talent. The player dubbed the Croatian Xavi is described as a “difficult player to categorise” by ESPN.com‘s Nick Dorrington: “Indeed, he performs best as the adaptable third wheel in a midfield three in which the others take charge of the dedicated defensive (Arijan Ademi at Dinamo) and creative (Ivan Rakitic and Luka Modric for Croatia) tasks.”

Many may feel like the Gunners need a more natural holding midfielder, one with the physicality to handle defensive chores in England’s top flight. But the Brozovic to Arsenal talk isn’t going away.

Earlier this month, the Daily Telegraph cited unnamed reports from Italy claiming the Gunners are ready to bid £11.9 million to tempt Inter boss Roberto Mancini into a sale.

Regardless of style, Wenger knows his squad needs midfield options. Jack Wilshere is another long-term injury absence. Meanwhile, Wenger has had to trust defender Calum Chambers as an auxiliary midfield substitute. Chambers has been joined on the bench by 17-year-old Jeff Reine-Adelaide, as Arsenal wait for the injury list to finally shorten.

The Gunners need numbers and quality in the middle to inspire their bid for the title.

Wenger knows he’ll get maximum effort from Flamini, a player he’d no doubt love to send off with a league winner’s medal. Meanwhile, Brozovic is an exciting talent the Arsenal manager would surely develop into a formidable midfield man.

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