Arsenal Given Green Light to Make Move for Long-Term Midfield Target as Sevilla Name Their Price

Arsenal will be given permission by Sevilla to sign midfielder Steven Nzonzi from the Spanish club, provided the Gunners are prepared to meet his £36m release clause.

New Arsenal head coach Unai Emery is said to be keen to further improve his options in central midfield despite already signing Uruguayan midfielder Lucas Torreira from Sampdoria this summer and has named Nzonzi as his main target.

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And according to the Mirror, Sevilla are prepared to part with Nzonzi if Arsenal meet their demands for the Frenchman.

Rumours linking Arsenal with a move for the former Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City midfielder have been ongoing all summer. However, Emery has remained coy when commenting on links and has opted not to give anything away with regard to the likelihood of his new club signing Nzonzi.

Speaking last month, Emery said: "I know him but we haven’t made a move for him."

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Emery was the manager who brought Nzonzi to Sevilla back in 2015, with the midfielder going on to become a mainstay in the Los Hispalensesside which won the 2016 Europa League.

Nzonzi's form in La Liga has seen the 29-year-old become a regular in the French national side and he was included in Didier Deschamps' 23-man squad for the World Cup as Les Bleus took home the trophy for the second time.

The Gunners are attempting to break back into the top four and qualify for the Champions League this season having finished fifth and sixth in their last two Premier League campaigns.

The club have signed Torreira, Bernd Leno, Sokratis, Matteo Guendouzi and Stephan Lichtsteiner in their attempts to strengthen the squad as Emery targets immediate success as Arsene Wenger's replacement.