Arsenal seem to have identified one of their key targets for this summer, having already made a move towards securing his signature.
What's the latest on Joao Cancelo to Arsenal?
That's according to Fabrizio Romano, who spoke to GIVEMESPORT on the Gunners' pursuit of Manchester City star Joao Cancelo.
He said: "For Cancelo, yes, they are interested. They had some contact, and they have very good relationship with these agents. So there was a conversation over the possibility to sign Cancelo."
Whilst Bayern Munich has opted against pursuing the €70m (£60m) buy option they held in his loan deal, apparently the treble-chasing outfit are now reportedly willing to lower that price to around €40m (£34m). This has alerted Barcelona as well as Mikel Arteta, which could make for an interesting battle this summer.
Would Joao Cancelo fit Arsenal's system?
Whilst Ben White and Bukayo Saka boast a fine partnership down the right flank, with the latter allowed to flourish offensively given he is backed up by the pure defensive exploits of the former, the Citizens have proven that offence is often the best form of defence.
Their all-out philosophy strangles the opposition of the ball, and their relentless waves of attack almost always bear fruit.
Therefore, by replacing the former Brighton and Hove Albion centre-back with the Portugal international, at the very least that right-wing will almost guarantee success in the final third, by having two players of such immense quality combining.
Last term Saka notched 15 goals and 11 assists, whilst the season prior Cancelo would offer up seven assists whilst maintaining 1.1 key passes and a further 2.3 tackles per game, via Sofascore.
He does not completely sacrifice solidity to be a key creative influence, yet manages to remain the "playmaker" that Rio Ferdinand branded him back in 2021.
His perfection of the inverted full-back role made him such a mainstay under Pep Guardiola, starting 36 league matches that term, and in moving to the Emirates, he could force a huge reshuffle in their defence that would make them more solid, stronger in depth and more potent in attack.
White could shift across as a more capable backup for William Saliba, and in having the 29-year-old on the opposite flank to Oleksandr Zinchenko, they would truly emphasise all-out control in every phase of the match.
However, the most exciting combination would undoubtedly be with Saka, as a couple of creative leaders to overload one side. They both boast pace and dynamism, yet technical quality beyond most in their respective positions.
It is a partnership that would strike fear into every left back in the country, and likely have Guardiola worried about just how strong he continues to make his nearest rival.
