Two Serie A giants to battle for Arsenal star Arteta will let go over ‘key concern’

Arsenal have decided they are willing to sell Takehiro Tomiyasu and two Italian heavyweights are interested in his services, reports have claimed.

Tomiyasu arrived in England in August 2021 when Arsenal paid Bologna £15.5million (€18.6m / US$20.7m) to sign him on an initial four-year contract which included the option for an extra 12 months. Since then, the versatile defender has made 83 appearances for Arsenal and chipped in with two goals and six assists.

Tomiyasu has proven himself to be a useful player for Mikel Arteta as he mainly likes to operate at right-back but can play anywhere across the backline if needed.

However, the Japan international was limited to 30 appearances in all competitions last term due to injury issues, and those problems have persisted this campaign.

Tomiyasu has not featured so far this season due to a knee injury. It has been suggested that he might return to the squad for Arsenal’s next Premier League game against Leicester City on Saturday, though that may be wishful thinking.

On Thursday, it emerged that Inter Milan have made Tomiyasu their No 1 January target to bolster their defensive options. At the time, it was stated that Arsenal sporting director Edu will demand £25m for Tomiyasu as he looks to make a profit on the player.

There has now been a double update on the 25-year-old’s future. As per Italian source Calciomercato, Inter are no longer the only Serie A giants eyeing Tomiyasu as Juventus have joined the race to snap him up.

The report gives both Inter and Juventus encouragement by adding that Tomiyasu could be on the move for less than previously thought. It is suggested that the Gunners will actually consider offers worth around £16.7m (€20m / US$22.2m), a fee which would still represent a small profit.

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CaughtOffside, meanwhile, claim that the main reason Arteta is willing to part ways with Tomiyasu is his poor fitness record. This is the ‘key concern’ which has opened the door for Inter and Juve to swoop in.

Tomiyasu is a solid defender who can deal with top forwards on his day, but Arsenal have not seen enough of that quality player as he has spent too much time in the treatment room.

With Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber both starting to impress, Arteta now feels he can cope without Tomiyasu in the full-back areas.

While the 42-cap international might depart North London, Arteta and Edu are already working on potential signings for the 2025 transfer windows.

Edu views Villarreal winger Yeremy Pino as a perfect addition to the Arsenal forward line, with the 21-year-old emerging as a top star in Spain.

Pino is not the only La Liga player Arsenal are interested in, as they remain keen on landing Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia, too.

Arsenal held talks for Garcia over the summer but were priced out of a move, which saw them bring in Neto on loan from Bournemouth instead.

But Neto is 35 and is therefore not considered as a long-term backup for David Raya. Arsenal scouts have been hugely impressed by Garcia’s performances in La Liga and feel he could give Raya good competition for the No 1 spot, which will likely result in a fresh January bid.