Arsenal are insistent on signing Fenerbahce defender Ferdi Kadioglu this summer, according to Turkish publication Sabah.
The Gunners have been heavily linked with the Turkey international over the past few weeks and it was recently claimed that personal terms are being discussed through his agent.
Sabah now report that Arsenal have already made an ‘official offer’ on the table. The Gunners have offered €20 million which was found to be low by the Fenerbahce management.
It is added that the London giants are ‘insistent’ on landing the versatile full-back and the club’s hierarchy are prepared to make a fresh proposal worth €25m in the coming days.
Kadioglu could replace Zinchenko at Arsenal
The Gunners currently have have a settled central defensive partnership in William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes while Ben White is an undisputed starter from right-back.
However, they are lacking the same from the left-back position. In the recent season, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Jakub Kiwior shared the duties.
Among the trio, Zinchenko was largely out-of-favour during the back end of the campaign. Kiwior was preferred over him before Tomiyasu became the main stay from the role.
If Arsenal were to sign Kadioglu, it is most likely that Zinchenko could be shown the exit door. The Ukrainian was once the manager’s favourite but that is no longer the case.
Kadioglu started off his career as an attacking midfielder and a right winger, but he has played in the right and left-back positions for Fenerbahce over the past couple of years.
The 24-year-old has particularly impressed from the left side of the backline this term. He has eight goal contributions, but has also been brilliant with his defensive showing.
The Turkish ace has averaged two tackles and 6.5 ball recoveries per league outing. He has also won 60 per cent of his duels while almost completing two take-ons per appearance.
Kadiogly could provide the right balance in attack and defence. The right-footed star has been compared to Joao Cancelo with his ability to invert and provide line-breaking passes.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com & Sofascore.com
