Arsenal braced for summer bids from Bayern Munich for their top talent as Pep Guardiola bids to fill the gap caused by Holger Badstuber’s injury.
German publication Bild report that new Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola will invest in a central defender this summer, with Holger Badstuber expected to be ruled out until March 2014 with a rupture of his cruciate knee ligament, and 35 year-old Daniel van Buyten approaching the end of his career.
Bild name five defenders upon Guardiola’s shortlist for the summer, with Arsenal centre backs Laurent Koscielny and Thomas Vermaelen both in his sights, with Shakhtar Donetsk’s 23 year-old Ukraine international Yaroslav Rakitskiy, Jeremy Mathieu of Valencia and former FC Barcelona star Eric Abidal completing the shortlist.
With Badstuber a versatile performer capable of playing at centre half or left back, it is intriguing to note that all players on the list apart from Koscielny are left footed defenders.
Except for the 33 year-old Eric Abidal, who is available on a free transfer after being released on a free transfer, each have years left in them who could add real competition to the back line at the Allianz Arena.
Bild indicate that Vermaelen and Rakitskiy are the leading contenders for the role, and with Arsenal’s club captain currently out of favour at Emirates Stadium having been dropped for poor performances, the Gunners could be open to bids.
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