North London giants Arsenal have been handed a huge blow in their quest to sign the Manchester United duo of Juan Manuel Mata and Phil Jones.

This is because the three-time European champions have opened contract talks with Mata and Phil Jones.

Both players from top four rivals Manchester United have been linked with a transfer to the Gunners but it appears that the Red Devils are keen on retaining their services beyond the current season.

Spanish international midfielder Juan Mata is in the last year of his current Manchester United contract having signed a four-and-a-half year deal when he joined from rivals Chelsea in January 2014 in a reported club-record deal worth around £37.1m.

With his long-term future uncertain, the 30-year-old has been linked with a transfer to former club Valencia as well as a move to the Emirates Stadium with the Gunners.

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Arsenal manager Unai Emery was said to be interested in reuniting with Mata whom he worked with at Valencia between 2008 and 2011.

Phil Jones has also been touted as a possible Arsenal signing with less than a year left on his contract at Manchester United.

The England international centre back was also linked with a move to North London side Tottenham Hotspur but he’s almost certain to stay at Old Trafford after the club opened contract talks with him.

Arsenal may have finally found a solution to their defensive problems ahead of the upcoming transfer window in January.

The Gunners have reportedly identified Atalanta defender Gianluca Mancini as the man to finally solve their defensive crisis.

Arsenal have already conceded fifteen goals in their first twelve games in the Premier League this season in addition to just two clean sheets this term.

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Those two shutouts came during the home games against Everton and Watford on Matchday 6 and Matchday 7 respectively.

According to the report from Transfer Market Web (TMW) via Daily Express, Arsenal have already scouted Gianluca Mancini with a view to a move when the mid-season transfer window starts in the New Year.

The North London giants have sent scouts to watch the Fiorentina Academy graduate in action for Atalanta.

The 22-year-old has featured eleven times for Atalanta in the new Italian Serie A season.

He has already scored three league goals with the last coming on Sunday in the surprising 4-1 thrashing of Inter Milan.

His impressive outings for Atalanta in the Italian Serie A have played a major role in his side’s ascent to the top eight on the Italian Serie A table.

The Italian duo of AS Roma and Inter Milan are also interested in the Italian centre back.

Premier League giants Arsenal could turn to Italian international defender Cristiano Biraghi in a bid to find a solution to the problematic left side of the Gunners defence.

Arsenal manager Unai Emery has had to use five players in the left-spot in just 12 league games and that’s partly due to the injuries sustained by the first choice duo of Sead Kolasinac and Nacho Monreal.

Apart from Bosnian international Kolasinac and Spanish international star Monreal, the trio of Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Granit Xhaka and summer signing Stephan Lichtsteiner have also been employed at the left-back position.

Unai Emery is in search of a long-term solution to the problem and several options have been mentioned in the media.

Ajax Amsterdam defender Nicolas Tagliafico has previously been linked with the North Londoners.

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The Argentine international left-back has had a great start to the season with the Dutch giants thus leading to the transfer rumours.

The latest player to be linked to the position is Fiorentina left-back Cristiano Biraghi.

The 26-year-old is rated at just £6.75m though it’s not certain whether that would be enough to persuade the Italian club to sell.

He has featured for the Italian national team on three occasions and scored his first goal for his country in the 1-0 win over Poland in what was a UEFA Nations League clash played in October.

3-time Premier League winners Arsenal are ruminating on a potential move for Espanyol defender Mario Hermoso ahead of the upcoming transfer window in the New Year.

The 23-year-old has been in impressive form for his Catalan club in the new Spanish La Liga season thereby attracting interest from the Premier League.

He has played a big role in Espanyol’s rise to the top five on the Spanish league table.

According to the publication from trusted Spanish media platform Marca via dailycannon, Arsenal are thinking about paying his release clause to sign him when the winter transfer window opens.

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It was revealed that the Real Madrid Academy graduate has a release clause of €40m in his current contract at Espanyol and that the Gunners will have to pay it to sign their transfer target.

Arsenal could face a stumbling block in their bid to sign him due to the fact that Real Madrid have a €7.5m buyback clause in his Espanyol contract.

He came through the ranks at Real Madrid but didn’t make any appearance for the first team before joining Espanyol.

It was also revealed that the Los Merengues are entitled to half of his release clause (€20m) if the European champions decide against activating the buyback clause.

ESPN pundit Paul Mariner who is believed to be an insider has revealed that there is a secret pact between Arsenal contract rebel Aaron Ramsey and Liverpool which may mean a transfer for the Wales international to the Anfield.

Ramsey is set to leave the club at the end of the season after seeing his contract run into the last months without any agreement on the table owing to the financial burden a new deal might cost the club.

Ramsey has had a gentleman’s agreement with the North London side where he was told he will not be allowed to leave in the January transfer window but will see out his contract and leave as a free agent at the end of the season.

A lot has been speculated about the would-be destination of the Wales international with Manchester United, Juventus, Real Madrid all reported to be interested in having the star player.

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But latest revelation reveals that there might have been an agreement between the Reds and the player to have him replace James Milner at the club.

Ramsey is tipped to be able to fit into any top European team because of his quality but there is no doubt he will largely consider a move to any club that plays in the UEFA Champions League.

Manchester United have opened contract talks with Arsenal target Juan Manuel Mata.

The 30-year-old has less than a year on his current Manchester United contract thus leading to rumours about his long-term future at Old Trafford.

The Spaniard has been strongly linked with a free transfer move to Arsenal at the end of this season.

He has also been linked with a return to former club Valencia.

A move to North London with Arsenal would afford him the opportunity to reunite with his former manager Unai Emery.

Mata and Unai Emery enjoyed a three-year working relationship at Spanish La Liga giants Valencia.

The Spanish international midfielder played under Unai Emery between 2008 and 2011 before he sealed a big money move to Chelsea in the summer of 2011.

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He helped the Blues win both the 2012 Champions League and 2013 Europa League titles before he left for Manchester United in January 2014.

The Reds Devils paid a club-record fee of £37.1m for the playmaker who then signed a four-and-a-half year contract until 2018.

The proposed reunion with Unai Emery has been thrown in doubt following the news that he’s in talks with Manchester United over a contract extension alongside teammates Ander Herrera and England international player Ashley Young.

The vice-president of Brazilian club Bahia has revealed that they have not received any bid for highly rated midfielder Ramires.

Bahia vice-president Victor Ferraz talked about the transfer status of Ramires while he was speaking on Radio Metropole.

Ferraz further added that the club is waiting for bids for the highly rated Brazilian midfielder.

Ramires, with real names Eric Dos Santos Rodrigues, has been linked with a move to Europe ahead of the upcoming transfer window in the New Year.

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Premier League giants Arsenal and Spanish La Liga side Atletico Madrid are the two clubs linked with the 18-year-old.

Arsenal would be hoping to see off the Spanish side in their pursuit of the highly rated midfielder.

The Gunners have already been beaten by the opposition on the pitch last season and the North London giants would try to avoid a repeat off it.

Arsenal were eliminated by Atletico Madrid in the semifinals of last season’s Europa League campaign via a 2-1 aggregate win over the Gunners.

Atletico Madrid went on to win the title following the 2-0 win over French Ligue 1 side Olympique Marseille in their final clash in May.

Arsenal have already recruited some exciting midfielders like Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi and RamRamires could join them in North London.

Spanish La Liga giants Atletico Madrid have entered the race to sign young Brazilian midfielder Ramires ahead of the transfer window which begins in few weeks’ time.

Ramires, with real names, Eric Dos Santos Rodrigues, has repeatedly been linked with a move to North London with Arsenal.

The exciting midfield prospect plays his club football for Brazilian club Bahia.

According to popular English news outlet TalkSport, the Gunners will have to fend off the threat of Atletico Madrid in the race to sign the Brazilian wonderkid.

Atletico Madrid already have one over the Gunners and the club would hoping that they can pay the Rojiblancos back in equal measure even if it’s off the field.

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Atletico Madrid stopped the Gunners’ run in the Europa League last season at the semifinal stage.

The Spanish giants won 2-1 on aggregate to secure a final spot in last season’s edition.

Arsenal had earlier played 1-1 in their home leg before a lone goal from controversial striker Diego Costa gave Diego Simeone and his players a 1-0 over the Gunners thus making it 2-1 on aggregate.

Arsenal manager Unai Emery is expected to do some form of business in the January transfer window and Bahia could be one of the potential signings at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal recorded another unbeaten match in the League following their 1-1 draw against Wolves on Sunday but that wasn’t enough to see them leapfrog Tottenham from the fourth position.

The Gunners have experienced great turnaround since Unai Emery replaced Arsene Wenger at the Emirate Stadium but the Spanish tactician needs to let his players know they need to be more consistent and determined.

After their first two defeats to Manchester City and Chelsea respectively, the former PSG manager led his side to 11-match winning streak in all competitions.

Since their invincibility was halted by Crystal Palace in their 2-2 draw at the Selhurst Park, the Gunners haven’t been convincing in their display.

Alex Iwobi, who was nothing short of brilliance throughout their winning streak, is gradually becoming less effective and unreliable.

The young Nigerian started against Wolves on Sunday but he had to make way for Matteo Guendozi after just 45 minutes due to his unimpressive performance.

Just like Iwobi, Arsenal strikers haven’t been convincing in front of goal as Aubameyang and Lacazette continue to blow hot and cold.

In the same veil, the Defenders are equally letting down their guard as they now comfortably concede cheap goals thereby putting intense pressure on strikers to get goals.

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As much as Unai Emery deserves accolades for how he transformed the club within a short period of time, it is relatively important to let him know that his priority is to win trophies.

Unlike Ligue 1 where he seamlessly won the title with PSG, Premier League is very competitive and more physical he must know that every point count in the title race.

Considering the present form of the clubs vying for a top-four finish, it would be unforgivable if Arsenal fail to defeat any of these teams – Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham and Manchester United.

Should he fail to ensure consistency among his players and pick up maximum points against lesser teams, then it won’t be surprising to see the North London club return to Wenger’s era when they always struggle to end up in the top four.

As it stands, the Gunners are fifth on the log with 24 points, three points behind Tottenham who occupy the fourth position. They will be hoping to return back to winning ways when they battle Bournemouth on the 25th after the upcoming international break.

Arsenal will have to fend off London competition in their pursuit of Italian international defender Daniele Rugani ahead of the next transfer window in few weeks’ time.

Daniele Rugani is on the payroll of Italian Serie A giants Juventus.

The 24-year-old has repeatedly been linked with a move to the Premier League.

London rivals Chelsea were reported as a possible transfer destination for Rugani when new manager Maurizio Sarri took over in the summer.

Rugani played under Sarri while the 59-year-old was the Empoli manager.

Nothing came out of those aforementioned transfer rumours in the summer but the Blues are back for the Old Lady defender.

According to the report from popular English news portal Daily Express, Chelsea have reignited their interest in Daniele Rugani.

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It was further revealed that Arsenal have to contend with the Blues for the Italian.

Arsenal are in the market for reinforcements to boost the squad being built by new manager Unai Emery and Daniele Rugani is one of the Gunners’ transfer targets.

He has a Juventus contract that runs until 2021.

With three years left on his current deal at the Juventus Stadium, it could take at least £30m to prise him away from the Italian Serie A giants.