Arsenal are reportedly interested in signing Brentford midfielder Christian Norgaard this summer.
The Gunners are looking to add another midfielder to Mikel Arteta’s ranks after it was revealed last week that Thomas Partey is now likely to leave North London.
The Ghanaian is reluctant to sign the contract offer Arsenal have proposed to him, and thus, replacements are being lined up by Andrea Berta.
Lucien Agoume has been heavily linked with Arsenal, although the Italian sporting director may feel a more experienced Premier League-proven option makes more sense for Arteta’s squad.
Norgaard has been identified as a Partey replacement candidate, and the Dane could be acquired for a cut-price fee this summer.
With that said, here are four Arsenal players who would be impacted by the signing of Norgaard.
Winners from Arsenal signing Christian Norgaard
Martin Zubimendi
Martin Zubimendi is set to complete his move to Arsenal from Real Sociedad, with the player flying to London last week to settle the formalities ahead of the transfer.
The Spaniard can expect to assume a prominent role in Arteta’s side, although he may need some time to adapt to English football and bed in.
The potential signing of Norgaard would allow him to do so, while the Brentford man will also allow Zubimendi to rest occasionally throughout next season, rather than him being overplayed during a congested fixture schedule.
The Denmark international is unlikely to threaten Zubimendi’s place in Arteta’s default starting eleven, but he will provide him with genuine cover when needed.
Declan Rice
While predominantly a defensive midfielder, Norgaard can also be deployed as an eight.
Thus, for similar reasons to Zubimendi, the addition of the 31-year-old could hugely benefit Declan Rice next season, as the England international has been played into the ground in recent seasons.
Making 50 appearances or more in each of the last four campaigns, Arsenal must carefully manage Rice’s minutes moving forward, to ensure he doesn’t burn out or sustain a severe injury.
Norgaard provides Arteta with another trusted rotation option in midfield, meaning the Gunners’ player of the year for 2024/25 can sit games out from time to time.
Losers from Arsenal signing Christian Norgaard
Myles Lewis-Skelly
Myles Lewis-Skelly enjoyed an outstanding breakthrough campaign for the Gunners at left-back last season.
However, the Hale End graduate is a midfielder by trade and may have had aspirations to step into the middle of the park moving forward.
With Partey and Jorginho departing, a pathway to this positional change was potentially opening up for him, particularly amid rumours linking Jorrel Hato to Arsenal.
Hato’s arrival would have enabled Lewis-Skelly to focus on playing in midfield, but Norgaard’s presence in the Gunners’ squad would most likely restrict the number of opportunities the 18-year-old would get in his original position.
Mikel Merino
With a striker likely to arrive this summer and Kai Havertz returning from injury, Mikel Merino’s minutes as a number nine will presumably become non-existent.
Having to forge his way into a midfield role, the Spain international may have hoped that Partey and Jorginho would both go with just one coming in.
This would have meant if one of Zubimendi or Rice needed a rest or was unavailable, Merino would have been the first name to come into the side on paper.
However, Norgaard’s prospective arrival would complicate this, and would likely see him drop further down the pecking order.
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