Arsenal Interested in Signing Former Liverpool Defender

Arsenal's centre-back department has been left short after William Saliba went down injured under no contact during France's semi-final clash with eventual World Champions Spain. It was soon revealed that the defender had been battling a back problem since the latter stages of the Premier League season, and that the issue compounded into an injury that now requires a significant period of rehabilitation.

Jurrien Timber is also still weeks away from a return thanks to the groin injury that ruled him out of appearing for the Netherlands during this summer's tournament. These two absences have left the Gunners lacking in defence, and they are now targeting a former Liverpool defender to make up the numbers.

Arsenal have been eyeing defensive reinforcements since Saliba's injury was confirmed, as he is expected to miss a significant portion of the first half of the Premier League season. Targets included Aston Villa's Ezri Konsa (who had also been linked to Liverpool before they secured the loan of Ronald Araujo), and Atletico Madrid's Marc Pubill. A move for either has yet to materialise, and the London club are now targeting a former Red to bolster their defence.

David Ornstein, for The Athletic, has revealed that Arsenal are interested in signing Jarell Quansah. Whilst Quansah would be open towards the opportunity to join the current Premier League Champions, Bayer Leverkusen don't want to sell.

Ornstein also confirms that Liverpool's long-known buy-back option has expired for this summer. The Reds could have brought Quansah back to Anfield for a fixed fee of 70 million euros.

Fabrizio Romano has also weighed in on the saga, stating that Arsenal have made contact with Quansah's camp and that Leverkusen will try to keep him for at least one more season.

Quansah's status as a former Red, and the buy-back option included in his current contract, naturally makes his future a topic of discussion for Liverpool fans. Yet, I don't think the club itself will pay any mind to recent developments.

Whilst talented, there is a reason Quansah left the club. He was also sold during a period of uncertainty over Ibrahima Konaté's contract, who eventually joined Real Madrid on a free transfer. If the powers that be at Liverpool really rated the young defender, surely they would've kept him around as Konaté's natural replacement?

Whilst there is a buy-back mechanism in his Leverkusen contract, it isn't cheap. I don't believe Quansah has improved to such a degree during his time in Germany that bringing him back to Anfield would represent signing a substantially improved player. His short World Cup cameo for England also showed that, whilst he is talented enough to feature, he remains prone to error.

For Quansah, he needs to ask himself if a move to Arsenal is in his own best interest. He will likely drop from the team at no fault of his own as soon as Saliba returns from injury, so is the Frenchman's immense quality and importance to Arsenal. It'll be interesting to see how this saga develops as an outside observer.

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