Joan Garcia continues to be linked with Arsenal (Photo by Ryan Pierse, Alex Caparros/Getty Images)
Arsenal reportedly held talks with the representatives of Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia in Spain last week.
The Spanish shot-stopper seemingly remains a transfer target for the Gunners ahead of this summer, according to a report from the Athletic.
Garcia has previously been linked with Arsenal for around £25m by the Daily Mirror, and it looks like they’re already doing some of the groundwork to bring him to the Emirates Stadium for next season.
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Arsenal were in Spain for the club’s Champions League clash with Girona last week, and the Athletic state that they used this opportunity to meet with Garcia’s representatives.
It remains to be seen if this deal will definitely end up going through, but it certainly seems like Arsenal are doing their best to put themselves in a strong position.
Do Arsenal really need another goalkeeper?
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has been through a lot of goalkeepers during his time in charge of the club, with the Spanish tactician chopping and changing both his first-choice ‘keepers and backup options a few times.
It could be that Garcia will simply be coming in to replace Neto, who in turn replaced Aaron Ramsdale when he left to join Southampton last summer.
Neto is only at AFC for this season, so Garcia could be useful in giving Arteta a reliable backup for David Raya next term.
Still, if Arsenal do end up paying something like £25m for Garcia, that’s quite a lot of money for someone who’s just going to sit on the bench all season.
Perhaps Arteta is once again thinking about changing his number one, and Garcia could be being eyed up with the view to challenging Raya for his place.
After all, at the age of just 23, Garcia probably won’t be too keen on a backup role and will want career progression after impressing during his time in La Liga.
