Pacey winger reported to be in talks with Arsenal idolised Thierry Henry as a youngster

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A player that Arsenal are reportedly in talks with over a prospective move to the Emirates Stadium says he idolised Gunners legend Thierry Henry as a youngster.

According to Todo Fichajes, Arsenal have made contact with the representatives of Schalke winger Rabbi Matondo.

As well as the Gunners, Real Madrid are credited with an interest in the 19-year-old, while Chelsea have also thrown their name into the hat, claims the Spanish outlet.

Matondo joined the Bundesliga side in January 2019 for a reported £10million after turning down a new deal at Manchester City, following in Jadon Sancho’s footsteps by swapping England for Germany.

The 19-year-old has clocked up 24 appearances in all competitions for Schalke, including 17 this season, with 15 in the 2019-20 Bundesliga campaign, which has recently resumed.

According to Todo Fichajes, Arsenal have begun conversations with the four-times capped Wales international and his entourage in a bid to convince them of a switch to North London.

When Bundesliga.com asked Matondo earlier this season if he had any role models while growing up, he replied: “I had a role model when I was growing up in Thierry Henry.

“Obviously, right now there are a lot of good players playing that I admire like Kylian Mbappe and these kinds of players.”

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With Arsenal just one of the many teams expected to tighten their purse strings this summer in wake of current events, a player like Matondo isn’t likely to be prohibitively expensive given his relatively modest appearance and goal tally since moving to Gelsenkirchen.

That said, he is still very highly rated at Schalke and they’re unlikely to let him go without a fight, particularly when big clubs like the Gunners, Real Madrid and even Manchester United (Evening Standard) are said to be in the running.

Matondo is a talented, pacey young winger with great running ability and dribbling skills, often leaving defenders trailing on both the left or right flank – something Arsenal could very much do with next season – and the prospect of playing at the club where his boyhood hero became a legend would surely be a major draw for him.