"They always had his name on their list" - Fabrizio Romano says Arsenal could sign £40 million star in January 

Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano has reported that Arsenal could make an attempt to sign Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans in the January transfer window.

The Belgian was heavily linked with a move to the north London side in the summer but the deal didn't go through. He stayed with the Foxes and has registered four goals and one assist in 18 appearances across competitions this season.

Tielemans' contract with Leicester City expires next summer so the club could look to cash in on him in January to avoid letting him leave for free.

As per transfer expert Romano, the Gunners could look to bring the Belgian to the Emirates. He told GiveMeSport:

“Tielemans has always been on the list at Arsenal, he has always been appreciated. They always had his name on their list.”

He added:

“At the moment, there are no conversations with Leicester, but I think this is one to watch because in the summer, Arsenal arrived in the final days to try to approach Leicester for Tielemans, then they did the same with Aston Villa for Douglas Luiz.”

The Foxes signed Tielemans from AS Monaco for £40 million in 2019. He has since played 176 games for the club, scoring 28 goals and providing 25 assists.

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Mikel Arteta on Arsenal's upcoming Premier League clash against West Ham United

While the January transfer window will be a point of focus, Arsenal will be paying more attention to their return to Premier League action.

The Gunners currently sit atop the standings, five points above second-placed Manchester City. They have lost just one game and drawn one in their 14 league matches so far.

They are set to host West Ham United on Boxing Day (December 26) to mark their return to action following the FIFA World Cup break. Ahead of the game, Gunners manager Mikel Arteta shared his thoughts on the Hammers and their manager David Moyes.

In a pre-match press conference, he said:

"Very dangerous. I know for sure [Moyes] has been working the team really hard since he took over. He absolutely maximized the potential of that team, and took them to a different level, and I’m sure they have been working really hard like we all have been in this period.

"It will be a very difficult contest."

West Ham are currently in 16th place in the Premier League table, having won just four of their 15 games so far. They are just a point above the relegation zone and will look to start fresh against Arsenal.