Arsenal target £15m Chilean star to replace the outgoing Fabregas

Arturo Vidal has emerged as the man Arsene Wenger wants to replace Cesc Fabregas at the heart of the Arsenal midfield.

The Bayer Leverkusen midfielder scored 10 goals and made 11 assists last season as Leverkusen guaranteed themselves Champions League football next season with a second-place finish in the Bundesliga.

The 24-year-old Chilean also has 30 caps for his country and was part of a two-man holding midfield for Chile at last year’s World Cup.

Vidal predominantly plays as a defensive midfielder for Chile but was used as an attacking midfielder by Leverkusen last season and ended the campaign as the German side’s top scorer.

Confident in both attack and defence, Vidal has the necessary tools to become a big hit at the Emirates and his experience at international level would be a valuable asset to the Gunners.

It is believed an offer in the region of £15m could tempt Vidal away from Leverkusen and should Arsenal get the £35m they want for Fabregas, it would be a good piece of business.

Fabregas looks destined to join Barcelona at some point this summer and it’s just a case of who will win the battle between the two clubs in the boardroom as both battle to get the best deal.

Nasri’s position as an Arsenal player remains unclear but the arrival of Ashley Young to Manchester United suggests Sir Alex Ferguson will not be targeting the Arsenal midfielder and unless the Frenchman wants to head back to France with Paris Saint-Germain, he will be an Arsenal player next season.

Nasri would benefit from the stability that Vidal would bring to the centre of the midfield and while losing Fabregas would be a big blow to the Gunners, one player doesn’t make a team.

The emergence of both Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey means losing Fabregas wouldn’t be such a big blow to Arsenal and the arrival of Vidal should bring optimism to the Emirates.