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Report: Champions League club wants ‘magnificent’ Arsenal player; Edu wants £8.5m for him

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This summer is likely to bring about a lot of change at Arsenal.

Several Gunners players are out of contract, while others look likely to be sold.

One of those could be Bernd Leno, who lost his first-team spot to Aaron Ramsdale early this season.

Nottingham Forest v Arsenal: The Emirates FA Cup Third Round
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images

Leno joined Arsenal in 2018 from Bayer Leverkusen for a reported £19.1million.

The Germany international was first-choice at the Emirates Stadium up until September last year.

Following a poor start to the season for Arsenal, Arteta opted to give Ramsdale a chance in goal.

The summer signing impressed from the off and quickly made the first-choice gloves his own.

Meanwhile, Leno has found himself warming the bench most of the time, with the occasional cup runout.

The 30-year-old is reportedly on the radar of several clubs from the Bundesliga.

Now, according to Correio da Manha – via Sport Witness – Benfica are also eyeing Leno.

The Eagles are reportedly evaluating the possibility of making a bid for the 30-year-old this summer.

Roger Schmidt, Benfica’s new manager, worked with Leno for three years at Leverkusen.

The German boss reportedly sees his compatriot as a potential number one goalkeeper at the club.

However, the Gunners apparently won’t accept selling him for less than €10m (£8.5m), and that ‘complicates the deal’.

Arteta has previously lauded Leno as “magnificent“ and clearly rates him highly.

But with Ramsdale now first-choice and Matt Turner joining in the summer, it looks as though Leno’s Arsenal days could soon be up.

Benfica wouldn’t be a bad shout for Leno – they reached the Champions League quarter-finals this year and qualified for the playoffs next year by finishing third in the league.

However, it all depends on whether they’re willing and able to meet Arsenal’s valuation.