Surprise word stemming from the English media late on Saturday points towards Arsenal considering a shock move for a member of the midfield ranks of London rivals Chelsea.
The player in question? N'Golo Kante.
As per a report from the Daily Star, the powers that be at the Emirates remain keen to add to Mikel Arteta's ranks in the middle of the park ahead of the new season.
To this point, Leicester City star Youri Tielemans, of course, has been widely tipped as the number one such target to reinforce the Gunners' midfield options, albeit with an actual deal to take the Belgian international to north London remaining some way off completion.
And now, an insight into the potential reasoning behind Arsenal's hesitance to push forward with a move for Tielemans has been provided.
This comes with the transfer team at the Emirates, instead, understood to be focusing their attentions on the potential high-profile signing of the aforementioned N'Golo Kante.
As per a report from the Daily Star:
'Mikel Arteta wants more world-class defensive talent in his midfield ranks as he looks to improve on Arsenal's fifth-place finish last term. And with Kante's contract running down, Arsenal are ready to sound out whether Chelsea will cash in now.'
It now remains to be seen whether Chelsea will be open to dealing with a direct Premier League rival, albeit with Kante's wages also representing a potential stumbling block in any Arsenal swoop.
Manchester United, meanwhile, are too keeping a close eye on the situation.