Will Arsenal sign Wolfsburg’s Ricardo Rodriguez this summer?

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As the hype surrounding Arsenal’s capture of centre midfielder Granit Xhaka begins to subside, rumours have begun to build that the North London club could be ready to move for a fellow Swiss international and Bundesliga player.

Wolfsburg left back Ricardo Rodriguez has been strongly linked, by sources including ESPN FC, with a move away from the German club, and many believe the Emirates Stadium will be his next destination.

The Swiss full back has a release clause of £19 million pounds, but this expires at the end of June.

Rodriguez himself has stated he would like to move clubs this summer, and labelled the possibility of joining international team mate Xhaka at Arsenal would be “exciting”.

His potential move is something Wolfsburg sporting executive Klaus Allofs also confirmed, when the 59-year-old revealed the player’s intention to leave the club.

German sports website Kicker have claimed Arsenal have already made an enquiry on Rodriguez, and a bid to match his buy out clause looks imminent. So with Rodriguez seemingly likely to sign for Arsenal at this stage, just what kind of a defender would they be getting?

The 23-year-old has impressed both for club and country so far, and has firmly entrenched himself as a starter both for Wolfsburg and Switzerland in the past few years.

In comparison with current left back Nacho Monreal, Rodriguez would provide a more attacking presence. He is a much more adventurous full-back who likes to go forward when his team are in the final third. He has scored 20 goals with 25 assists in his 157 games across four seasons at Wolfsburg.

Whilst playing slightly higher up the pitch may leave him exposed from time to time, he can recover well and has proved himself as a very capable young defender.

Monreal is a lot more of the traditional defensive full back, and age 30 it may be time for manager Arsene Wenger to think about the future of the position. For the present the Spaniard has proven himself to be a very good left-back who has adapted well to the Premier League.

Should Arsenal make a move to sign Rodriguez, it appears the player would very much like to join the club and could link up well with fellow signing Xhaka. The defense is an area in which they need to strengthen, and the Swiss international could provide some insurance in this position.

With the high quality performances seen from Monreal last term, he may be allowed time to adjust to the Premier League, with Arsenal surely viewing him as the future of the left back position for the club – with backup Kieran Gibbs likely to leave the club this summer in search of regular first team football.

Rodriguez is a very good young player, who could become one of the best left-backs in the Premier League in the coming years. At £19million he would be an astute piece of business from Wenger, as he would get a very skilled defender, who also boasts plenty of quality going forward.

Whilst it may be difficult to work through a move before the end of the month, considering Rodriguez will be taking part in Euro 2016, the move is one worth making for Arsenal.

For a young international defender this is a bargain price, and is one Wenger should make sure he pays before his value increases when his buy-out clause expires at the end of this month.

Featured image: Some rights reserved by DSanchez17