Exclusive: Fabrizio Romano hails La Liga star amid interest from Arsenal - "He's the perfect midfielder"

La Liga is full of talented players, even outside of the big three of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. One of the best to have broken through over the last few years is Martin Zubimendi, who is not only regarded as one of the best defensive midfielders in LaLiga, but also across Europe.

Given his performances for Real Sociedad, it’s hardly surprising that there has been plenty of interest in Zubimendi’s services. At this stage, the biggest links have been with Arsenal, and as Fabrizio Romano has told Caught Offside in his exclusive column, he believes that the 24-year-old is the ideal option for the Premier League giants.

“We’ve had a lot of stories about Arsenal and different midfielders in recent times, with big names like Douglas Luiz, Amadou Onana and Martin Zubimendi linked with the Gunners. It looks difficult for a deal to happen this January, but we’ll see if the situation is different in the summer.

“So, which of those players would be the best fit for Mikel Arteta’s side? My personal feeling is that Zubimendi would be fantastic, even if Onana and Luiz have the advantage of both already knowing the Premier League. Zubimendi is fantastic player, he can help with his vision, quality and intelligence on the ball – he’s the perfect midfielder.

“Still, it’s important to say that he’s very happy at Real Sociedad, only focused on his club and he already rejected chances to leave in the recent years as he always wanted to stay there.”

The final point Romano makes is a key one. Zubimendi has, on multiple occasions, reiterated his desire to stay at Real Sociedad for many years to come. Not only is this a blow to Arsenal, but also Barcelona, who desperately need someone like him in their starting line-up.