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Arsenal eyeing shock signing with Unai Emery handed limited transfer budget
ARSENAL are looking to sign Stevenage defender Luther James-Wildin as Unai Emery comes to terms with his limited transfer budget.
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Emery has tried to sign Saint Etienne centre-back William Saliba this summer but the club want to receive the player back on loan next season.
The Gunners have also struggled to agree on a price for the highly-rated 19-year-old and, as a result, may look elsewhere for young backline talent.
And the north London club have ostensibly found that in fourth-tier Football League club Stevenage.
According to football.london, Arsenal are monitoring the progress of right-back James-Wildin.
The 21-year-old made 39 League Two appearances last season as The Boro finished 10th.
James-Wildin, valued at £1million also played at left-back and in midfield at times last campaign, establishing himself as a versatile player.
Emery wants to sign a back-up right-back for Hector Bellerin, who missed the last five months of the 2018/19 campaign due to knee ligament damage.
Carl Jenkinson has failed to impress Emery in the role and Ainsley Maitland-Niles, although proving an apt replacement, is conventionally a midfielder.
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Arsenal admire James-Wildin for his athleticism and Gunner scouts frequented Broadhall Way on many occasions to watch him last term.
The player is an Antigua and Barbados international and has grounded himself in the lower leagues, also turning out for Notts County and Nuneaton.
James-Wildin was watched by an Arsenal scout when Stevenage played on Tuesday night and a deal could be fashioned this summer if Emery loses patience with other irons in the fire.
Arsenal ostensibly have just £40m in transfer reserves to spend this summer, which can only be boosted by player sales.