23-year-old who wants Premier League move is backup option for Arsenal if Caicedo deal fails

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Arsenal have a backup option for Edu to target if the Gunners see their pursuit of Moises Caicedo fail – Martin Zubimendi.

What’s the story?

Well, as you may have already heard, Arsenal saw a £60m bid rejected for Caicedo – according to The Athletic.

Brighton are insisting that the Ecuador international is not for sale this month, with only an offer in the region of £100m likely to tempt them into changing that stance.

Now, The Times have shared an update on what Arsenal’s next plan of action is.

The Gunners are said to be considering another offer for Caicedo – who is interested in joining Arsenal – although if Brighton continue to fend off bids, their attention will turn to Zubimendi of Real Sociedad.

It is said that the Spain international is viewed as a cheaper alternative for Arsenal, given the fact he has a fixed £53m release clause written into his contract.

Interestingly, Spanish news outlet SPORT have already claimed that Barcelona are accepting defeat in their own pursuit of Zubimendi, with the 23-year-old said to be keen on a move to the Premier League.

So far this season, the Real Sociedad No.3 has made 23 appearances in all competitions, scoring one goal while also providing three assists.

Zubimendi could be just as good as Caicedo for Arsenal

At first, some Arsenal fans may react negatively if Zubimendi arrives instead of Caicedo, given his public status as their backup option.

However, Arteta and Edu have already shown that their backup targets are sometimes just as good – if not better – than the No.1 option.

That was evident when Arsenal abandoned their pursuit of Lisandro Martinez as Manchester United offered to pay well over the odds, before bringing Oleksandr Zinchenko to north London instead.

There was some disappointment over that situation back in July, but almost every Arsenal fan will now tell you that they got the best outcome.

Be sure to keep an eye on this situation, as Arsenal target a new central midfielder ahead of the deadline.