£100m player suggests he doesn’t want to leave this summer despite Arsenal links

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Arsenal have so far only been able to secure the services of one player in the transfer market after landing Riccardo Calafiori.

Mikel Arteta has been made to wait patiently in the market – as have other managers – with Arsenal assessing their options carefully.

The Gunners impressed in their latest outing which came against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday night at the Emirates.

But the Arsenal faithful were not treated to any new signings on display in north London with Calafiori absent through fatigue.

The new campaign kicks off in just over a week for the Gunners when Wolves make the trip to the capital.

But as things stand, Arsenal will only be heading into the game with one new addition from the side which finished second last term.

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Arsenal midfield target wants to stay this summer

Next on the to do list for Edu Gaspar is a new midfielder with Arsenal preparing a bid for Mikel Merino from Real Sociedad.

Having returned from the Euros this summer, Merino has recently been involved in Sociedad’s media day at their training ground.

With the Gunners aiming to bring in Merino, they will be cautious over a deal falling through with Liverpool now closing in on Martin Zubimendi – his Sociedad teammate.

There is another midfielder who Arsenal have had on their radar for some time now, but it seems as if he is set to stay this summer.

• READ MORE: Mikel Arteta suggests one Arsenal player needs to be more focused after win vs Bayer Leverkusen

Arsenal hold an interest in Newcastle United’s Bruno Guimaraes and have done for a while now.

However, the Brazil international – who had a £100m release clause – has spoken to the media on Thursday morning to share his desire to remain on Tyneside despite the speculation.

“I’m very happy, I never said I would like to leave, I always said I would like to put my name in the club’s history,” said the midfielder.

Although singing the Newcastle midfielder was always going to be difficult, this is not what Arsenal will have wanted to hear.

Arsenal will now have to go all out for Mikel Merino

The positive for Arsenal when it comes to potentially signing Merino this summer is that the Spain international is now in the final 12 months of his deal.

Therefore, Sociedad are at risk of losing him for nothing if he does not leave this summer.

However, if Sociedad are to bring in £60m from Liverpool for Zubimendi, perhaps they would be willing to chance keeping Merino in the hope he could be persuaded to ink a new deal.

With this in mind, Arsenal could be left relying on Merino to agitate for a move over the coming weeks but their pursuit of the 28-year-old may have just become a lot more difficult.