BREAKING NEWS FABRIZIO ROMANO COMFIRMED TRANSFERS DEAL, ERIC GARCIA ARRIVED EMIRATES STADIUM FOR MEDICAL

Arsenal identify surprise defensive transfer target and it's not Eric Garcia

Benfica defender Alexander Bah is the latest player to be linked with a summer transfer to Arsenal

Arsenal identify surprise defensive transfer target and it's not

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Arsenal have less than 72 hours to bring in any additional players before the summer transfer window slams shut.

The north Londoners have already spent in excess of £200million to bring in Jurrien Timber, Kai Havertz and Declan Rice on permanent deals whilst David Raya has also arrived on loan with an option to buy. But Timber sustained an ACL injury during his Premier League debut, effectively ruling him out for the majority of the 2023/24 campaign.

That leaves Mikel Arteta's side slightly short at the back, especially when you consider Takehiro Tomiyasu and Oleksandr Zinchenko both have endured numerous fitness issues in the past. Barcelona's Eric Garcia has been linked with a loan move to the Emirates Stadium in recent times as a potential stop-gap whilst Timber is injured.

However, another name that has now been mooted as a potential target for the Gunners is Benfica fullback Alexander Bah. According to Danish outlet Tipsbladet, a number of Premier League sides, including Arsenal, are interested in the 25-year-old, who is said to be valued by the Portuguese giants at around €30million-€35million (£26million-£30million).

Bah is quite an attacking option, not necessarily like Timber or Tomiyasu, who are both capable of operating as a centre-back, left-back or right-back. The Denmark international had often been deployed as a winger before signing for Benfica, where he has been utilised as more of an offensive-minded fullback.

Coincidentally, the north London outfit are in the process of offloading another fullback that they signed from the current Primeira Liga champions in the form of Nuno Tavares. The 23-year-old is edging closer to joining Nottingham Forest, football.london understands.

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Tavares swapped the Estadio da Luz for the Emirates Stadium two years ago, enduring a mixed debut season in the English capital before enjoying a relatively successful campaign on loan with Ligue 1 side Marseille last term. The Portugal Under-21 international has since attracted interest from Wolfsburg and Werder Bremen this summer.