Arsenal have put France goalkeeper
Hugo Lloris at the top of their goalkeeper shortlist,
Goal.com UK can reveal.
But Arsene Wenger will turn his attention to Ukraine No.1 Andriy
Pyatov if the Gunners are priced out of the market for
Lloris.
The French coach has admitted he is an admirer of Lyon’s Lloris but
it is believed that a bid of over £12 million would be needed to
tempt Les Gones to sell their highly-rated keeper.
Lyon bought Lloris for £8m from Nice two summers ago when the
23-year-old snubbed a move to AC Milan.
He has also been monitored by Manchester United and his star status
continues to rise after he was recently awarded the accolade of
Ligue 1 Goalkeeper of the Year for the second consecutive
season.
Wenger will make final checks on Lloris during the World Cup as he
weighs up a move.
Pyatov, 25, has been on the Arsenal
manager’s radar since he came to prominence with a string of
matchwinning performances in Shakhtar Donetsk’s 2008-09 UEFA
Cup-winning campaign.
HUGO LLORIS | Snapshot
BASICS
Age
Position
Club
International
Contract
SEASON STATS
Appearances (sub)
Conceded
Clean Sheets
Yellow Cards
Red Cards
ANALYSIS
Strength
Weakness
Current Form
Estimated Value
World Cup Place
IN FIVE WORDS
23
GK
Lyon
France
2013
52
44
20
1
0
Crosses
Distribution
World class
£15m+
Sure starter
Strong, athletic, brave,
assured, consistent
The Ukranian has found it hard to elbow veteran Oleksandr
Shovkovsky out of the national side but has still won 17 caps for
his country since making his debut in 2007.
Wenger has publicly backed his current crop of keepers Manuel
Almunia, Lukasz Fabianski and Vito Mannone but there is growing
pressure from Arsenal supporters for him to recruit a reliable
No.1.
Nevertheless, if the manager feels he cannot get good value in the
transfer market this summer then he may hold off until the January
transfer window before making a move