Arsenal can pile more misery on Real Madrid by poaching £30m top target after winning Martin Zubimendi transfer battle

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Arsenal have already hindered Real Madrid’s summer transfer plans by beating the Spanish club to the signing of Martin Zubimendi.

Zubimendi is set to sign for Arsenal, with the Gunners reaching an agreement with Real Sociedad over the deal earlier this year, although the addition is only expected to be announced in early July for accounting reasons.

Real Madrid reportedly tried to hijack the Zubimendi move at the eleventh hour, but it’s understood that the negotiations with the North Londoners were too far advanced for his switch to the Emirates not to materialise.

The Spaniard will join Arsenal and will represent a statement signing for Mikel Arteta, given the competition he and Andrea Berta had to fend off to secure the player’s services.

The Gunners should now look to repeat the feat with another Real Madrid target.

• READ MORE: Confirmed Arsenal summer 2025 transfer ins and outs, signings and done deals

Arsenal should enter the race to sign Angelo Stiller

Thomas Partey is yet to accept Arsenal’s contract offer, and in the event that the Ghanaian opts to leave N5 this summer, the Gunners will need to add another midfielder to Arteta’s ranks.

An exciting option available on the market for a cut-price fee is Stuttgart’s Angelo Stiller.

Stiller enjoyed an exceptional season in the Bundesliga last campaign, providing eight assists in 31 starts despite being a holding midfielder.

The German is said to have a £30 million release clause in his contract at Stuttgart, making him an affordable option to fill the role of being a Zubimendi competitor.

However, Stiller is understood to be on Real Madrid’s radar, with AS revealing earlier this month that Los Blancos are closely monitoring the 24-year-old’s situation.

Xabi Alonso and the Real Madrid hierarchy are in the market for a deep-lying midfielder who can replace the passing ability lost by the departures of Toni Kroos and Luka Modric.

This is why the La Liga giants were interested in signing Zubimendi, and why Stiller remains high up on their list of transfer options.

Given the paucity of top-class ball-progressing number sixes on the market, if Arsenal were to beat Real Madrid to the signing of Stiller, it’d be yet another significant blow to La Casa Blanca, prompted by the Gunners’ exploits.

Angelo Stiller would be an exceptional addition to Arsenal’s midfield

While it remains to be seen how Stiller’s numbers would translate to English football, the Germany international currently profiles as one of the best passers in European football.

Completing 9.48 progressive passes per 90 minutes in the Bundesliga last season, this places the former Hoffenheim man in the 99th percentile compared to other midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues for this metric.

Not only is he exceptional at breaking lines and getting his team up the pitch, but Stiller also produces impressive defensive output and is adept at preventing opposition transitions.

These are qualities that Arsenal could do with adding to their squad, and having both Stiller and Zubimendi at their disposal would certainly give Arteta a number of exciting options in the middle of the park.