Transfer News: Arsenal eye summer swoop for Malaga star Pablo Fornals

Arsenal are reportedly set to move for Malaga midfielder Pablo Fornals in the summer and could sign the player for a fee between €10 – €12 million

Spanish publication Marca are reporting that Arsenal are interested in Malaga midfielder Pablo Fornals. The Spaniard has come on the radar of Arsenal as a potential long-term replacement for Santi Cazorla and the Gunners are reportedly set to move for Fornals in the summer.

Pablo Fornals has surprisingly flown under the radar for a while, which is really intriguing as the player was handed his senior Spain cap in a star-studded international camp, by Vicente Del Bosque last year. Fornals is a pure central midfielder, but also has the ability to play in a more attacking role as well.

This season, which is the second full season for him as the part of the first-team setup in Malaga, the player, who had already become a regular face at the heart of the midfield last season, has been impressive for the La Liga outfit.

4 goals and 2 assists from 18 games do not do justice to the influence Fornals has had on Malaga. A more highlighting statistic would be that, out of the 5 games that he has not featured in, Malaga have been able to win just one of them.

MCFNews| @pablofornals scored ⚽️ in the Malaguista win: “We deserved a victory like this” #VamosMálaga ➡️ https://t.co/lKF5i6CHGU pic.twitter.com/nMb8U2uIHL

— Málaga CF English (@MalagaCF_en) February 21, 2017

Fornals influence at Malaga is almost akin to Cazorla’s at Arsenal as at the present moment. Arsenal, too, have struggled in the absence of the Spanish veteran. But his importance to the squad meant he was offered a one-year extension at the club, despite being confirmed to be out for the remainder of the present campaign.

And while the player is set to stay for another year, Arsene Wenger is already looking at long-term replacements for the 32-year-old, which has seen the Gunners being linked to multiple midfielders.

As per the report, Wenger has taken a liking to Fornals for his consistent performances and ability to control and dictate the tempo of play. And the Frenchman has put the player at the top of his shopping list in the summer.

The player signed a new deal in February last year, one that runs till 2019. But, the deal is thought to have a release clause of an amount between the €10 and €12 million mark, which will pique Wenger’s interest even further.

Fornals seems like the right kind of player and fits the profile of a young and promising talent, the ones Wenger likes to buy. But Arsenal fans, who are looking for the club to sign more established players, may have some mixed reactions to the rumour.

Either way, Fornals seems destined for great things and with the amount aforementioned, it wouldn’t be that bad of a thing to take a gamble on the player.