Arsenal set to rival Barcelona, Bayern Munich in pursuit of €60 million midfielder

Martin Zubimendi has been a subject of interest from Barcelona for a while now. The Blaugrana were intent on signing the Real Sociedad star last summer when Sergio Busquets departed, but finances and the player’s desire to stay at his club meant nothing materialised.

Heading into the upcoming summer window, though, Zubimendi continues to be on Barcelona’s radar, with the club still wanting to sign a top pivot midfielder as Oriol Romeu has not worked out as expected.

However, it appears that the competition for Zubimendi’s signing is increasing, complicating matters for Barça.

Arsenal, Bayern want Zubimendi

Indeed, as per the Mirror in England, Arsenal are very much interested in signing Zubimendi from Real Sociedad in the summer and are ready to battle Barcelona and Bayern Munich for the Spaniard.

With Thomas Partey expected to leave, the Gunners are in the market for a new defensive midfielder and see Zubimendi as their ideal target.

There was interest in signing the Spanish international last month itself but Real Sociedad made it clear that they would not enter into any kind of talks, making the Gunners postpone their pursuit until the summer.

Bayern Munich, for their part, are also very keen on Zubimendi, with the report suggesting that the Bavarians’ director Christoph Freund even met the midfielder in Portugal recently to discuss the transfer.

Where does this leave Barcelona?

As iterated earlier, Zubimendi has been on Barcelona’s radars for a while now and is seen as the ideal candidate to replace Busquets.

However, for starters, his €60 million release clause would be a hindrance for the Catalans, who have reportedly set aside a budget of only €35-40 million for a new No. 6 in the summer.

Furthermore, the interest from Arsenal and Bayern Munich, both of whom can offer a bigger transfer fee and a more lucrative contract, complicates matters further for the Blaugrana.