Arsenal transfer news: Ethan Nwaneri fear emerges as Mikel Arteta enters race for 'Serbian Pedri'

Arsenal have reportedly entered the race to sign a 17-year-old midfield wonderkid dubbed the 'Serbian Pedri'.

The Gunners' strength in depth in midfield has been critical to their Premier League title charge this season, with Martin Zubimendi, Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino, Eberechi Eze and Christian Norgaard all playing key roles on and off the pitch.

However, each member of the sextet has either reached their peak or are close to their prime years; Zubimendi is the youngest of the six at 26 years old.

Mikel Arteta does have an 18-year-old Ethan Nwaneri in his ranks, but the teenager is struggling to make a Premier League squad at the minute and could potentially be loaned out for the 2026-27 season in the hope of earning regular minutes.

Nwaneri is still seen as a player who could make a significant impact in the years to come, though, and Arsenal have been tipped to future-proof their midfield with more young talent either in January or the summer.

Arsenal, Barcelona, Bayern Munich battling for 'Serbian Pedri'

One of those young talents is 17-year-old Red Star Belgrade midfielder Vasilije Kostov, whom The Sun claims has caught the eye of Arsenal recruitment staff over the past year.

The 2008-born phenom has already registered 11 goal involvements in 27 appearances for the senior Red Star team, coming up with six strikes of his own and five assists since emerging from the club's academy system.

Kostov has largely featured as a number 10 this season, but he can also function in a deeper midfield position and on the right-hand side, providing the versatility that Arsenal boss Arteta loves.

Bayern Munich and Barcelona are also said to be keeping a close eye on the teenager, who made his senior Serbia debut in October and has been likened to Blaugrana star Pedri thanks to his exceptional technical ability.

Red Star will supposedly resist offers for Kostov during the January transfer window, but come the summer, they could entertain bids of around £17m for the 17-year-old, whose contract expires in 2028.

Do Arsenal really need the 'Serbian Pedri'?

Arsenal's name will inevitably crop up in conversations when it comes to signing the finest young talents in Europe, but some may question whether the Gunners really need to go after the 'Serbian Pedri' in the summer.

As Kostov has primarily played in an attacking midfield role, he would immediately compete with Odegaard, Eze, Nwaneri and 16-year-old Max Dowman for minutes, and too much competition could be detrimental to Arteta.

Summer signing Eze arrived to much fanfare, but even he is struggling to usurp Odegaard, and there may be fears that a deal for Kostov could also negatively impact Nwaneri and Dowman's first-team development.

Arsenal could circumvent such worries by signing Kostov for their youth team initially, or if Arteta moulds the teenager into more of a number eight or number six, but his profile is better-suited to a more advanced role.

However, while Arsenal are being linked with the likes of Elche's Rodrigo Mendoza and Lille's Ayyoub Bouaddi - who are not so attack-minded - maybe they can afford to lose out on Kostov.