Reigning Premier League champions Arsenal have opened talks to sign an Jarell Quansah from Bayer Leverkusen, according to reports.
The 23-year-old defender was a part of England's World Cup squad over the summer, making three starts against Panama, Mexico and France. Quansah was sent-off in England's round of 16 victory at the Azteca before returning for the third-place playoff victory over Les Bleus.
Injuries to both William Saliba and Jurrien Timber leave Mikel Arteta short on defensive reinforcements heading into the new campaign and, given he is able to fill in at both right-back or centre-back, Quansah's versatility would be extremely useful.
Sky Sports News are reporting that the Gunners have started talks to bring the former Liverpool man back to England, just one year after he joined Leverkusen in a deal worth £30m.
Quansah made 25 Bundesliga starts for Leverkusen last season, forming a key part of their backline as they reached the last 16 of the Champions League and semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal.
Although there have been no fees quoted as of yet, it is thought that the Gunners will have to pay a good bit more than the £30m the German outfit acquired Quansah for little over 12 months ago, especially given Liverpool's €70m buy-back option expired earlier this summer.
It's not the first time Arsenal have been linked with a defender that is able to feature at both full-back and centre-back during this window; the North London side seemed to have cooled their interest in Ezri Konsa, with Aston Villa's valuation of the 28-year-old deemed too pricey.
Arteta's men are bidding to become the first side other than Manchester City to retain their Premier League crown since 2008/09 and are currently 6/4 favourites to do so. They start their campaign when they host newly-promoted Coventry on Friday 21st August.
Any odds displayed were correct at the time of writing and are subject to fluctuation.
