Arsenal have been working hard trying to thrash out a deal for the German worldwide in recent weeks and Wenger confirmed to Sky Sports after the 0-0 draw at Leicester that negotiations were continuing as we approach the final week of the window.
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Mustafi is valued at around £30m but it is understood Arsenal are trying to negotiate less.
They signed 20-year-old Englishman Rob Holding from Bolton and Wenger praised his performance at the King Power Stadium, while Poland youngster Krystian Bielik is also being developed as a centre-back.
Mustafi (24) is one of the few “available” top class defenders on the market and Valencia admitted last week that they could be forced into selling one of their important players to comply with Financial Fair Play regulations.
The French boss is without Per Mertesacker and Gabriel Paulista, but was able to call on Laurent Koscielny to play alongside young centre-back Rob Holding in the 0-0 draw with Leicester at the weekend.
Signing Mustafi would arguably provide that depth, so they will be hoping that Chelsea do them a favour by leaving the path clear for Pedro to move to the Mestalla as it may force Valencia to reduce their asking price for a player who the Mirror claim is Wenger’s number one target.
“[Mustafi] is one of a number of players we are looking at”.
But he maintains that this summer it has been hard to find players who are available, good enough, and would represent value for money.
Patrick Vieira has blamed a lack of physicality and personality within Arsenal’s squad for their Premier League drought under Arsene Wenger. Spending and buying the right players is a quality.
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Arsenal are already five points behind Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City after collecting just one point from their opening two games of what is already a troubled season.
