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Mikel Arteta issues response to Mikel Merino Arsenal transfer question

sam truelove & kaya kaynak
·2-min read
Mikel Merino has been linked with a move to Arsenal this summer
-Credit: (Image: Getty Images)


Mikel Arteta did not give much away when he was asked for an update on Arsenal's transfer pursuit of Mikel Merino.

football.london understands the Gunners are interested in signing the Real Sociedad midfielder this summer, with the 28-year-old having less than one year remaining on his contract with the La Liga side. Arteta was asked about the club's pursuit of the Spaniard in his pre-match press conference ahead of Wolves.

He said: "You know that I cannot talk about any other players." When asked about the transfer market in general, Arteta added: "After the season we had two objectives – the main and most important one is make sure we are still in love with our players. Then, OK if there are still opportunities in the market we will look at them."

It's understood that Edu and Arteta are keen on strengthening the Gunners midfield this summer, although no new additions have yet been made. Riccardo Calafiori and David Raya have been the only major signings so far but that could change in the next two weeks, with the transfer window closing on August 30.

Arteta, though, does not seem too bothered as he is happy with his current set of players. "I already said at the beginning that the main focus is to improve our players and find margins that help them find a level that they probably hadn’t even dreamed about," he said on Friday afternoon.

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When asked if the club need a new striker, the former Man City assistant coach added: "We have great strikers already, we have a great attacking line and I’m really pleased with it."

Arsenal have a number of tricky Premier League fixtures in the coming weeks, with trips to Aston Villa, Tottenham and Man City to come. Arteta will be keen to get off to a good start against Wolves on Saturday and you can follow coverage of the game on football.london.