The rebuilding programme at Arsenal is well underway with Sven Mislintat, the club’s new head of recruitment, identifying another youngster to guide the Gunners back to the Premier League top four.
According to football.london, talks have begun with Atalanta over 17-year-old midfield tyro Dejan Kulusevski. The Swede impressed Arsenal scouts with his performances for Atalanta’s Under-19 side, for whom he has scored five goals and recorded seven assists this season.
Capped by Macedonia at Under-16 level, Kulusevski pledged his international allegiance to Sweden at the same level, Under-17 and Under-19. He has earned 25 caps for his country at the junior levels.
With injuries wrecking the careers of Santi Cazorla and Jack Wilshere, Mislintat is intent on imposing his vision of the future on the club and the youngster already identified an Arsenal striker as one of his idols.
Alexandre Lacazette, the £52m signing from Lyon last summer, is among those listed by the Swede.
“I like so many players today, maybe too many, not just one, like Lacazette,” Kulusevski said, “but I like Hazard and Mbappé, and then there’s Papu Gomez who is the strongest in the whole Serie A.”
With Arsenal and Atalanta in talks over his future, he may get to play with one of his idols every week.
