Arsenal ready to splash £43 million to sign 28-year-old midfielder ahead of 3 European giants: Reports

Mikel Arteta is hoping to refresh his midfield this summer.

Arsenal are reportedly prepared to splash £43 million to rope in Lazio star Sergej Milinkovic-Savic in the ongoing summer transfer window.

Milinkovic-Savic, 28, has been an irreplaceable figure for Lazio since arriving from KRC Genk for over £10 million in 2015. He has helped them lift three trophies so far, including a Coppa Italia crown in 2019.

A right-footed box-to-box operator, the Serbian has been rumored to leave his club this summer. With him in the final 12 months of his contract, he could be offloaded soon to avoid a Bosman move in 2024.

Of late, Milinkovic-Savic has drawn interest from the likes of AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus. He is said to be keen to accept a move to any of the three Serie A clubs, according to SportMediaset.

However, as per Fichajes, Arsenal are willing to blow their esteemed competition out of the water with a comparatively hefty bid for the midfielder. They are aiming to lodge an initial £43 million bid soon.

However, the Gunners could struggle to find an easy solution as Lazio president Claudio Lotito is known to be a tough negotiator.

Milinkovic-Savic, a two-time Lazio Player of the Season, could prove to be a good addition for Mikel Arteta's side. He would fill the void left by Granit Xhaka, who is said to be linked with Bayer Leverkusen.

So far, the FK Vojvodina academy graduate has scored 69 goals and laid out 59 assists in 341 matches across competitions for Lazio.

Kai Havertz backed to impress at Arsenal

Sharing his thoughts on Chelsea star Kai Havertz being linked with Arsenal, former Tottenham Hotspur star Andros Townsend said (h/t HITC):

"I think he will prove to be a good signing. Mikel Arteta did that last season. He brought in [Gabriel] Jesus, people questioned it. He brought in [Oleksandr] Zinchenko, people questioned it too. Now, it looks like that he is going to bring in Havertz. People are questioning it... but you have to trust him on the back of what he has done so far."

According to The Athletic, Arsenal have reached an agreement to sign the former Bayer Leverkusen player in a deal worth around £65 million.

Should the 37-cap Germany international join the Gunners this summer, he could prove to be an excellent signing for them. While he would provide competition to Gabriel Jesus, he could also serve as a rotational option for Martin Odegaard in the number 10 role.