Arsenal have made contact with the agent of Bayer Leverkusen winger Moussa Diaby as they look to try and step up their transfer plans.
According to Le10 Sport, Arsenal are locked in a battle with German giants Borussia Dortmund to sign the winger, who has excelled in the Bundesliga this term.
In 27 appearances in all competitions for Leverkusen this season, Diaby, who is a France Under-21 international, has netted five goals and registered eight assists, including two in Leverkusen's 4-1 win over Werder Bremen in their return to Bundesliga action following the coronavirus shutdown on Monday evening.
The report claims that Arsenal are said to be confident of bringing Diaby to North London because of the strong links that they have with his representatives.
It is also claimed that both Arsenal and Dortmund have made contact with Diaby's agent to discuss personal terms ahead of looking to pull off a deal once the next transfer window officially opens.
The sudden increase in interest in Diaby's services comes less than a year after he joined Leverkusen from French giants PSG. The Bundesliga side paid £13.4million to sign him last year and are now thought to want more than double that price after a string of superb performances this season.
Despite Leverkusen's demands, both Arsenal and Dortmund remain keen on signing the 20-year-old, despite the fact that both the Gunners and Dortmund are likely to see their respective transfer budgets slashed in the next window because of the economic impact the COVID-19 pandemic has brought.
Dortmund could increase their interest in Diaby's services even further if they are forced into the sale of Jadon Sancho in the next window, meaning the German giants would be on the lookout for a replacement winger, particularly with a sense of speed, which Diaby certainly has in abundance.
To add to to that, it is worth noting, of course, that Dortmund pride themselves on sourcing young, promising players in the hope that they can develop them and then sell them on for a profit.
Diaby, of course, is not the only Bayer Leverkusen player to be linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium, as attacking-midfielder Kai Havertz is another name that is being mooted by Gunners supporters.
