Arsenal Interested in World Cup Breakout Star Likened to Barcelona's Ousmane Dembele

Arsenal are being linked with a potential move for Rennes winger Ismaila Sarr, a player who announced himself on the global stage at the World Cup while in action for Senegal.

Sarr, who joined Rennes from Metz in 2017 after emerging from the same Generation Foot academy in Senegal that produced Sadio Mane, and has continued his impressive World Cup form at club level, standing out in both Ligue 1 and the Europa League so far.

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According to a report from the Daily Mirror, Arsenal are now 'checking in' on the 20-year-old, although it is said that Rennes are not willing to lose Sarr as soon as January.

The Gunners have been apparently been considering 'wide options' and Sarr appears to be of great interest after drawing comparisons with Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembele, another player who made a significant impact for Rennes before moving on.

Arsenal were speculatively linked with Dembele over the summer after the Frenchman initially struggled to justify his €145m price tag as a result of an injury-ravaged debut season in Catalonia. However, Dembele has started very well in 2018/19 and Sarr would be more attainable.

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Lille's Nicolas Pepe is another winger the club has been linked with in recent weeks

Unai Emery's Arsenal have recovered from a poor start to the season which saw them lose back-to-back games against rivals Manchester City and Chelsea, going on to win their last four Premier League fixtures and kicking off the Europa League with a victory as well.

Next up is the visit of Brentford in the Carabao Cup, before Watford make the short trip to the Emirates Stadium at the weekend, followed by a lengthy midweek journey in the Europa League to Azerbaijan to face Qarabag.