Arsenal have confirmed that William Saliba faces an extended period out of action, and as such it’s no surprise that intermediaries are now offering them players.

One interesting name I’ve heard about is Sporting Lisbon centre-back Zeno Debast, who is well known to scouts of top Premier League clubs.

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For now, there have not been any formal talks and it’s not even clear if Arsenal are going to pursue a deal, but sources with ties to the agents industry have informed me that the Gunners have been offered Debast via intermediaries.

The 22-year-old is understood to be available for around €40m, so that could be a good low-cost option for Arsenal to consider.

For now, it seems we’re at an early stage in all this. Arsenal have only just got conclusive information on Saliba, so we’re unlikely to see anything advancing on a new defensive signing straight away.

However, one source suggested Arsenal have looked at Debast before and that they have not said no after being informed that they could be invited to make a move for the player.

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Manchester United also have a long-standing interest in the Belgium international, though it doesn’t currently seem like he’s going to be one of their top targets in this transfer window.

It will be interesting to see if Arsenal decide to go ahead with this, but it seems like a possibility that can’t be ruled out, especially as other targets look so expensive.

Arsenal were priced out of a move for Morgan Rogers, and there are no regrets there – I’m told they were not prepared to go ahead with a £117m fee like Chelsea were as it simply didn’t represent value for money.

The Premier League champions are also unlikely to pursue a move for Ezri Konsa as they value him at around £35m, while Aston Villa view him as being closer to a £60m player.

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AFC don’t want to spend crazy money this summer and will insist on sticking to their policy of strengthening their squad in a sustainable way.

Unless other alternatives emerge, that could start to make Debast look like one of the most tempting options out there right now. It’s early days, but keep your eyes peeled on this one.