Arsenal-linked 27-year-old previously described as a ‘beast’ who’s ‘top and can prove it’

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Arsenal have reportedly been offered the services of Alphonse Areola on a season-long loan from Paris Saint-Germain, according to the Evening Standard.

At present, the Gunners have two top goalkeepers vying for the number one spot – Bernd Leno and Emiliano Martinez.

However, the latter has been linked with a move to Aston Villa, who are reportedly looking for a new stopper in the absence of the injured Tom Heaton.

Martinez’s departure would leave Mikel Arteta with a dilemma, but the Evening Standard claims Areola has been mentioned to Arsenal as a possible short-term replacement for the Argentine.

Areola came through the ranks at PSG and has made 107 senior appearances for the French capital side, keeping an impressive 53 shutouts and conceding just 87 goals.

The 27-year-old also has several loan spells on his CV, including at fellow French outfits Lens and Bastia, plus Spanish duo Villarreal and Real Madrid.

Jesus Unanua, his former coach at Villarreal, told Marca in October last year: “I was not surprised that Real Madrid signed Areola, there were few better goalkeepers. He is top and can prove it.

“Areola is a sponge, he wants to learn everything. What he needs is the continuity that he did not have at PSG.

“The best thing I have seen about Areola is his physical appearance. He is a beast. The balls he has caught are not seen by anyone. I remember being able to hit the crossbar with his foot.”

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It’s almost baffling how a goalkeeper of Areola’s calibre isn’t the undisputed first-choice at a club, given his impressive record pretty much everywhere he’s played.

Arsenal reportedly being offered the 6ft 5in ace on loan is certainly a great proposition, though the finer details of the deal – how much wages they’d contribute, what role he’d be offered – would have to be ironed out.

If Martinez does leave, Areola’s arrival would definitely give Arteta some breathing room in terms of his transfer budget, with a search for a permanent new goalkeeper – and the expenses that come with it – potentially being postponed until January or next summer.