Arsenal reportedly want Everton midfielder Ross Barkley.
According to reports from the London Evening Standard today, Arsenal are ready to challenge Tottenham Hotspur in the race to sign Everton midfielder Ross Barkley.
Barkley, 23, has risen up through the ranks at Goodison Park, and he notched five goals and eight assists in the Premier League last season as he continued to feature as a key player for the Toffees.
Everton’s Ross Barkley
However, his future is up in the air right now, given that his contract with Everton expires next summer, and with no sign of him signing a new deal, he could leave for nothing in 2018.
Everton may therefore choose to sell Barkley this summer, and Arsenal are now joining the race for his signature according to the London Evening Standard, just days after Everton were linked with a Gunners ace.
The Mirror reported last weekend that Everton want to sign Arsenal forward Theo Walcott in a £30million deal, with the England international pushed down the pecking order yet again by Alexandre Lacazette’s arrival.
The 28-year-old attacker hit ten goals last season, but started just over half of Arsenal’s Premier League games, as manager Arsene Wenger again struggling to find a role for Walcott.
Arsenal’s Theo Walcott celebrates scoring
The speedster now needs to play regularly, and with Everton lacking pace in the final third, Walcott could serve as an ideal complement to the likes of Sandro Ramirez and Wayne Rooney in the Everton attack, whether he features out wide or as a striker.
The Toffees have so far struggled to find a buyer for Barkley, and with Arsenal seemingly interested, they should be looking to use that in potential negotiations for Walcott, in a move that could make sense for all parties involved, as it allows Barkley to move on whilst giving Walcott first-team football.
Everton could even look to receive cash plus Walcott for Barkley, and whilst swap deals tend to be difficult to pull off in football, this is one that may have some legs if the reported interest in the two players is to be believed.
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