Mikel Arteta's four dream Arsenal transfers revealed as Edu plots £203m summer swoop

Arsenal transfer news: Mikel Arteta and Edu are working on four marquee summer signings that will hugely improve the Gunners squad

Arsenal being busy in the summer transfer window appears a guarantee at this point. The Gunners are desperate to build on from their superb 2022/23 Premier League season where they finished in second place, just five points off champions Manchester City after spending 240 days at the summit.

Mikel Arteta and Edu have likely already identified the positions where depth is needed and thus the players they would like to bring in this summer. Outgoings are also expected to take place though, with the first one close to being finalised which will see Granit Xhaka join Bayer Leverkusen with two parties currently in advanced talks over a £13million deal, as football.london understands.

If all goes to plan Arsenal could go into the 2023/24 season with four major additions and over £200million spent on signings that will take the club to the next level. Speaking on his Here We Go podcast Fabrizio Romano revealed the positions Arteta wants to strengthen. "From what I understand, they will sign two midfielders this summer. They dream of Declan Rice plus one more. And also, new fullback, new centre back. So Arsenal want to sign important players for next season."

Tottenham have also made enquiries for Guehi but the Eagles don't appear keen on letting the former Chelsea man leave and have set a £50million asking price. Bayer Leverkusen's Edmond Tapsoba is another defended that has been looked at by Arsenal, football.london understands.

Leverkusen losing Evan Ndicka this summer on a free transfer could make the club reluctant to sell and as a Premier League proven player, Guehi could provide perfect cover in defence. An advanced midfielder is also likely to arrive, alongside Rice, with Mason Mount and Mohamed Kudus strongly linked, while Gabri Veiga is another option.

The Athletic are reporting that a £40million offer would be enough to sign Kudus and his versatility to play at right-midfield makes him a the perfect option for Arteta. The final position that Arteta wants to be filled is right-back with a number of targets discussed internally including Real Valladolid's Ivan Fresneda and Mohamed Simakan of RB Leipzig.

The Gunners nearly moved for Fresneda in January, with his ability to play an inverted full-back role at just 18 a strength in his game Arteta will love. Meanwhile, Simakan has a similar attribute to Ben White in that he can also play as a central defender.

Oleksandr Zinchenko's injury struggles at points in the 2022/23 campaign cost Arsenal but another option being available on the right in his absence will be of high value to the Gunners. Valladolid are expecting Fresneda to depart this summer and according to Romano, the Spanish club have requested €15million (£13.25million) to let him leave in the next week.