The former Bologna man looks like he could be one of the next great Italian centre-backs, and while fans are still revelling in his arrival, the North Londoners appear to be moving on to a plethora of other targets.
Big-name strikers such as Victor Osimhen and Viktor Gyokeres have been heavily linked with a move to the club, while other reports suggest that a move for Euro 2024 winner Fabian Ruiz is right around the corner.
fabian-ruiz-psg-premier-league
However, based on recent reports, it appears that Edu Gaspar and Co have reached an agreement on personal terms for a midfielder who has been compared to Ruiz in the past.
Arsenal transfer news
According to a recent report from French outlet Sports Zone, Arsenal have come to a "contractual agreement" on personal terms with Real Sociedad star Mikel Merino.
Merino-Arsenal
The report claims that the Spaniard has agreed to a four-year deal with the Gunners and that the "next step" is for the two clubs to come to an agreement as well.
The update does not mention how much the £51k-per-week ace may cost the North Londoners, but a separate report last week revealed that he could be sold for about £25m.
Mikel Merino
It's undoubtedly still a lot of money, but within the context of modern football, landing Merino for that much seems like a steal, and the fact he's won comparisons to Ruiz in the past is a great bonus.
Merino's comparison to Ruiz
So, there are a few similarities between the Merino and Ruiz, some of which are fairly obvious and straightforward, while others are a little more complex. We'll first look at a comparison stemming from the latter.
fabian-ruiz-premier-league-burnley-kompany-psg-transfer-gossip
It stems from FBref, which compared every player at Euro 2024 to those in a similar position, created a list of the ten most comparable players for each one, and concluded that the PSG star was the fourth most similar midfielder to the Sociedad ace at the tournament.
They came to this conclusion by examining the pair's underlying numbers and measuring how closely they ranked in a number of key metrics, including, but not limited to, shots on target, expected assisted goals, passes into the penalty area, completed short passes, passes blocked, and dribblers tackled, all per 90.
Merino & Ruiz
Stats per 90
Merino
Ruiz
Shots on target
0.99
1.00
Expected Assisted Goals
0.20
0.17
Passes into the Penalty Area
1.00
1.00
Completed Short Passes
33.5
32.8
Passes Blocked
0.50
0.50
Dribblers Tackled
1.00
1.00
All Stats via FBref for Euro 2024
Now that that similarity has been cleared up let's examine some of the other, far more straightforward facts that make comparing these two players so easy.
Firstly, the pair are both fully fledged Spanish internationals now, with the former Napoli star winning 29 senior caps thus far and the Sociedad "monster", as dubbed by data analyst Ben Mattinson, trailing by one, with 28. Moreover, they both played a part in La Roja's surprise triumph at the Euros this year, with the Arsenal target's extra-time winner against Germany in the quarter-finals a particular highlight.
Next, both players are older than the typical players the Gunners have targeted in recent years, with both men coming in at 28 years old. This suggests Arteta wants to add some more experience to his side for the upcoming campaign.
Lastly, both stars play in essentially the same position, with the PSG ace making 22 starts in central midfield last season to his compatriot's 38 for the Basque side.
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Ultimately, signing Merino for potentially just £25m would be a steal, and the fact he can be compared to Ruiz so easily is just an added bonus. Therefore, Arsenal should be doing what they can to bring the Spaniard to the Emirates this summer, as his experience and quality would be a brilliant addition.
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