The Juventus centre-back was reportedly on Arsenal’s radar last month.
The Gunners were extremely busy throughout the course of the January transfer window, bringing in three new faces and shipping out four established names in the process, but they were interested in bringing another star name to the club, according to Daniele Rugani’s agent, who told Radio Sportiva that the north Londoners made enquires about his client.
Arsenal fans would surely have been delighted to see their club bring in Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but their need for another world-class defender is still painfully clear to see.
Rugani’s agent told Radio Sportiva how the Gunners were interested in signing his client last month, but insisted that they did not make a concrete offer for his services:
“Daniele’s doing well, I’m happy for him. Arsenal? They didn’t launch any assaults for him. They expressed a liking for him, but we have respect for Juventus.”
Is the Italian the type of defender Arsenal should be targeting, though?
Rugani, 23, is a classy centre-back, and is already relatively experienced, having made 93 combined appearances for the Old Lady and Empoli.
He is cool and composed when in possession, and is a competent passer of the football, but he is not the leader-type character that the Gunners so desperately crave.
There are also question marks as to whether the Italian could handle the robust nature of the Premier League.
Despite standing at 6ft 3in tall, he has a slight frame, and he could find it difficult to adjust to the physicality of the English game.
Rugani could prove to be a good signing for Arsenal, if they do in fact bring him to the Emirates in the summer, but they must make sure they do their due diligence before comitting to any kind of deal for the Juve man.
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