Saint-Etienne defender Loic Perrin has revealed that Arsenal have been in contact over a transfer.
After allowing Thomas Vermaelen to leave the club for Barcelona this summer, Arsenal have been caught a little short at centre back.
Laurent Koscielny has missed a fair chunk of the season due to injury, which has forced Arsene Wenger to use full backs Calum Chambers, Mathieu Debuchy and Nacho Monreal in the centre of defence.
Now the January transfer window is upon us, it’s time for Wenger to dip into the market and bring in a centre back who can preferably also provide cover for defensive midfield.
Unsurprisingly, Wenger has been linked with a move to sign Saint-Etienne captain Loic Perrin – a player who is predominantly a centre back but also has experience in midfield from his early years.
The 29-year-old has recently been touted for a £6m move to the Emirates Stadium, and his manager Christophe Galtier confirmed this weekend that there is interest from Arsenal.
Perrin has now come out and addressed the rumour himself, saying that he has been contacted by the Gunners but they haven’t yet submitted a bid to Saint-Etienne.
“I have been contacted personally”, Perrin said. “Arsenal is interested. But for now there is still no contact with Saint-Etienne.”
Arsenal fans were disappointed last season with the arrival of Kim Kallstrom, and whilst they may struggle to get excited over the potential arrival of Perrin, he’d offer necessary cover for the Gunners, with the situation gathering pace in recent days.
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