Arsenal will have to fend off Real Madrid in January if they want to keep hold of out of favour midfielder Martin Zubimendi.

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The summer window closed without a definitive conclusion for Arsenal midfielder Martin Zubimendi.

The Basque only arrived at the Emirates a year ago, and at first he looked like he was going to be a key player for Mikel Arteta. But as the season went by, he fell further and further out of the manager’s starting plans. The sheer amount of depth and quality the Gunners have makes minutes hard to come by, even though the 27 year old has been good when he’s played.

There were links to other teams – including Chelsea – this summer, but Zubimendi stayed put. When January rolls around it looks like those rumours will be back, however. TeamTalk today cite Spanish sources which claim a move to Real Madrid is already a done deal.

Zubimendi va a ser el fichaje del Madrid en el invernal. Y, sin ser un gran futbolista, va a ser un gran fichaje. Y el Madrid va a disfrutar más de Güler y a competir más en los momentos serios. pic.twitter.com/qIVGZM46F6

— Javi Roldán (@JaviHipo) September 13, 2026

Real Madrid await perfect moment to strike for midfielder

Martin Zubimendi in action for Arsenal against Sunderland (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

Madrid, along with Chelsea, made contact with Arsenal in the summer, but there was no rush to get a deal done.

Zubemendi has so far not had a single league or Champions League start this season. If this pattern continues for the next few months, he will be pushing much harder for a move, and Madrid are hoping to take advantage of that.

Chelsea will see how things shake out with their own limited midfield options. They may already be regretting not pushing harder to sign Zubimendi a couple of weeks ago as they struggle for numbers centrally.