Arsenal have been tipped to sign a defensive midfielder in the summer transfer window.
It's a position in which the Gunners haven't quite been able to successfully fill since the departures of Patrick Vieira and Gilberto Silva in the summer of 2005 and 2008 respectively.
Many have attempted to fill those big shoes.
This includes the likes of Mathieu Flamini, Alex Song, Mathieu Flamini, Granit Xhaka and Lucas Torreira.
However, none have managed to provide the necessary protection to the back four which would then allow the north London outfit to challenge for honours at home and abroad.
The latest of many names linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium this summer in a bid to solve the club's midfield problem is Atletico Madrid's Thomas Partey.
According to the Telegraph, a source at Wanda Metropolitano has said there is "interest from an English club" in the Ghanaian who reportedly has a release clause in the region of £45m.
But Gilberto Silva thinks Gunners head coach Mikel Arteta already has a successor to himself and Vieira at his disposal in Mohamed Elneny.
"In the last few years, the situation has been difficult at Arsenal. They have very similar players in midfield, with profiles that resemble each other and not really players of the profile of Patrick Vieira, or even my profile," the Brazilian told France Football, as per Get Football News France.
"The only individual who resembled (us), that could have been Mohamed Elneny, but he didn’t play.
"But they have not really had those types of players to cover the defensive midfield position.
"Arsenal always plays positively, trying to deploy an attacking game, and it is not easy to find someone to marry the ability to play the forward game and to do the work in the shadows in the defensive phases."
Elneny's name being mentioned is likely to come as a surprise to many Arsenal supporters as he Egypt international has struggled to impress ever since arriving from Basel in the 2016 January transfer window.
He barely featured during Arsene Wenger's final season in charge, was a bit-part player under Unai Emery last term and is spending this season on loan at Besiktas.
It's expected that Elneny doesn't have a long-term future at Arsenal, but if Arteta takes Gilberto's advice on board he could solve a major problem within his squad and save £45m with one u-turn.
