Arsenal identify Wolves star as leading summer transfer target

Word stemming from the English media on Monday points towards Arsenal imminently reigniting the club's pursuit of Wolverhampton Wanderers star Ruben Neves.

Portuguese international Neves was of course hotly tipped for a move to north London throughout the January transfer window.

In the end, however, despite Arsenal's desperate need for reinforcements in the middle of the park (a shortcoming which was laid bare once more this past weekend), a deal could not be struck.

If the latest speculation to have surfaced across the day to date is anything to go by, though, then Mikel Arteta and co. have evidently not given up hope of landing the 25-year-old just yet.

As per a report from Sky Sports News, the Gunners have set their sights on Neves once more ahead of the summer transfer window.

The former Porto man is labelled as one of the club's 'top transfer targets', as the transfer team at the Emirates go in search of a long-term partner for Thomas Partey.

Wolves, for their part, remain hopeful of tying their midfield conductor down to fresh terms in the Midlands, albeit with it added that a price-tag of £50 - 60 million has been slapped on Neves' head.

Seagulls triumph

Word of Arsenal’s renewed interest in Neves' signature of course comes just 48 hours on from the club’s lack of depth in the middle of the park, as alluded to above, being ruthlessly exposed once more.

After welcoming out of form Brighton & Hove Albion to the Emirates for a crucial outing amid their ongoing pursuit of a Premier League top-4 berth, the Gunners were put to the sword in concerning fashion, by two goals to one.

This came with youngster Sambi Lokonga thrown back in at the deep end, forced to man the base of Arsenal’s midfield on his own, amid the absence of the sidelined Thomas Partey, and Granit Xhaka’s surprise move to left-back.

Brighton, in turn, went on to dominate the centre of the pitch throughout lengthy stretches of the 90 minutes, ultimately proving key to their emergence from north London with all three points.

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