Arsenal have entered the race with Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund for FC Basel defender Manuel Akanji, according to Calciomercato.com.
The Swiss international has been on Jurgen Klopp’s side radar for a number of months but it seems the Gunners have now also taken an interest in the 22 year old.
Akanji generally plays as a centre back, but can be utilised at full back if required. For Basel, the defender has pretty much been a mainstay of the Swiss champions’s defence since he arrived from Winterthur in 2015. However, in March 2016 he did suffer a serious injury, and he was sidelined for over nine months with a cruciate ligament rupture.
On his return at the start of 2017, the Swiss centre half firmly re-established himself as a first team regular, and he signed a four year contract extension back in April as a reward for his fine form. In the summer, he was given his first senior cap by Switzerland for the World Cup qualifier against the Faroe Islands, and he started both legs of the World Cup playoff against Northern Ireland last month.
