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If rumour’s true, £16m Arsenal star’s in trouble – Our View

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Calum Chambers could suffer if Arsenal sign Issa Diop in the summer.

Man Of The Match Calum Chambers applauds the Arsenal fans after the Premier League match between Everton FC and Arsenal FC at Goodison Park on December 21, 2019 in Liverpool, United...

With Premier League football suspended, there is transfer gossip swirling around and Arsenal are involved in it.

According to The Mirror, Arsenal are interested in signing West Ham United centre-back Issa Diop.

The 23-year-old has been a top defender for the Hammers since arriving in England during the summer of 2018 and, if rumours are believed, the North Londoners are keen.

Thing is, Diop’s potential arrival would affect quite a few Arsenal boys in a negative way and none more so than Calum Chambers.

Chambers, a £16 million signing in 2014 [The Guardian], is a long-term absentee after suffering knee ligament damage in January.

And when the young Englishman returns there could be several top defenders ahead of him in the pecking order – well, at centre-back anyway.

Diop might be coming to Arsenal, according to the report, but one man who definitely will be arriving at the Emirates Stadium in the coming months is William Saliba, who officially signed for the club last summer.

Given the options that Mikel Arteta already has – like Shkodran Mustafi, Sokratis Papastathopoulos, David Luiz and Rob Holding – Chambers could have a huge fight on his hands if and when he’s also challenging Diop and Saliba for regular football.

If he isn’t fit by the start of next season, which is a distinct possibility too, then it’s even worse, as Arteta will look to build his best XI around the players he has, not the ones coming back.

Calum Chambers of Arsenal and Wilfried Zaha of Crystal Palace during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Crystal Palace at Emirates Stadium on October 27, 2019 in London,...