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Unai Emery has identified his top January target already in the shape of Sevilla midfielder Ever Banega.
The 30-year old was heavily linked with a move to The Emirates during the summer, but, in the end, negotiations petered out; however, although he is under contract at Sevilla until 2020, his contract allegedly contains an £18 million release clause which, The Metro, reports, Arsenal are prepared to pay.
Emery knows Banega well; the Argentine international played under him at Valencia and also at Sevilla, where he was part of the squad that won back-to-back Europa Leagues. Now he wants another reunion with the player as he looks to add further competition for places in the Gunners midfield.
Responsibility for signing Banega will now be the primary responsibility of former Barcelona sporting director Raul Sanllehi, who this week was named Head of Football at Arsenal after Chief Executive Ivan Gazidis announced his decision to join AC Milan.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.