Arsenal target has already informed his club of desire to leave

Mikel Merino has informed Real Sociedad of his desire to leave, with Arsenal interested and the player viewed as a good market opportunity.

Imanol Troyano reports for El Diario Vasco that Mikel Merino has already made it clear to Real Sociedad that he wants them to cash in on him, with a season left on his current contract.

Troyano claims the Arsenal, led by Mikel Arteta, are considered the most interested in the signing right now.

Fabrizio Romano reports that Merino is also on Barcelona’s shortlist, but Arsenal have been tracking him and he’s considered a good market opportunity. Mikel Arteta reportedly follows Real Sociedad regularly.

James McNicholas reported for The Athletic this week that Arsenal want a central midfielder this summer, and Merino is one player of interest.

According to McNicholas, Arteta is an admirer of Merino’s talent and physicality, and the suggestion is that Arsenal could stray from their usual age recruitment profile for the 28-year-old.

Though Arsenal have primarily focused on younger signings in recent years, McNicholas points out that the Gunners have occasionally done deals for the likes of Jorginho and Leandro Trossard.

In late June, Barcelona journalist Toni Juanmarti reported that Arteta had reached out to Merino personally to express his interest and outline his potential role at Arsenal.

The report suggested Merino could be available for €25m (£21.1m), making him a more affordable option for Arsenal than some of the alternatives.

Merino made 45 appearances for Real Sociedad in 2023/24, scoring eight goals and assisting a further four. He previously played in the Premier League with Newcastle United for a season, making 25 appearances in 2017/18 before moving on to La Liga.

The midfielder has been a regular for Spain at Euro 2024, largely coming off the bench, but he had a pivotal impact scoring the winning goal in the quarter-final against Germany.