Arsenal shortlist their ideal Mykhaylo Mudryk alternative

After losing out on their initial January target Mykhailo Mudryk to rivals Chelsea, Arsenal looks to have found an alternative in Moussa Diaby

According to Sky Sports News, Arsenal has ‘shortlisted’ French winger Moussa Diaby as the Gunners continue their search for another forward this transfer window. The club has reportedly been in contact with Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen to inquire about a potential deal for Diaby. As reported earlier this week by The Top Flight, Arsenal is weighing up new winger options.

It had been heavily reported that Arsenal was very interested in signing Ukrainian youngster Mykhaylo Mudryk from Shakhtar Donetsk and one would be forgiven if they assumed Mudryk would ultimately end up at Arsenal. While it looked like a deal was getting close, London rivals Chelsea swooped in and secured the transfer of Mudryk in a deal worth nearly £89M including bonuses.

With just about half a month left in this transfer window, Edu, Arsenal’s sporting director, will be put to the test to identify a new world-class winger for Arsenal as they continue their extraordinary run of form in the Premier League this season. Moussa Diaby could be that answer but Sky Sports reports that Leverkusen wants a similar fee to what Shakhtar received for Mudryk. While the argument certainly can be made that Diaby could provide a similar impact to what Mudryk could have, it is unlikely Arsenal will cough up that amount of money for someone who was not their original priority target this window.

Moussa Diaby is a former PSG youth product and he played just a single season of professional football with the Parisian club before making the switch to Leverkusen. Last season in the Bundesliga, he tallied 13 goals and 12 assists which put him on the radar of many teams last summer but a deal never came to be. To the surprise of some, Diaby did not make France’s squad for the World Cup despite a strong start to the season.

What could make Diaby an interesting option for Arsenal outside of his high level of unpredictability for defenders is that he has almost an even split of games played between the left and right-wing position (according to Transfermarkt) meaning in Arteta’s side he could be deployed regularly on either side of the pitch.

It’s yet to be seen whether or not the Gunners will step up their interest significantly in the player but it is definitely one to watch as this month goes on.