Arsenal are reportedly monitoring the situation of Eintracht Frankfurt centre-back Evan Ndicka.
The 23-year-old came through the youth ranks at Auxerre before making the move to Germany in 2018, where he immediately became a regular for Die Adler.
Ndicka was one of the first names on the teamsheet as Frankfurt won the Europa League in the 2021-22 season, starting 10 matches and playing 100 minutes against Rangers in the final.
The 6ft 3in defender has also started all 15 of Frankfurt's matches domestically and continentally this term, including four outings in the Champions League, and he has only missed seven minutes of action in total.
Ndicka is still waiting for his first cap for the senior France team, but he has nevertheless established a reputation as one of the Bundesliga's brightest defensive talents.
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Over the past four years, Ndicka has struck 10 goals and provided nine assists in 154 games for Frankfurt, but his contract is due to expire at the end of the season.
As a result, numerous clubs are keeping an eye on the Frenchman's situation with a move to a free transfer in 2023, and according to Il Romanista, Arsenal are in the mix.
The report adds that Roma are also plotting a move for the former Auxerre starlet, but Frankfurt have not given up hope on signing Ndicka to a new deal.
Earlier this month, journalist Florian Plettenburg claimed that the Europa League winners had submitted a written proposal of a new deal to Ndicka, which would keep him on the books at 2025.
Alongside Daichi Kamada, Ndicka can expect to become one of Die Adler's highest earners with any new contract, but Frankfurt will not break their wage structure to sign him to a new deal.
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As a result, the Bundesliga side are running the risk of losing Ndicka as a free agent in 2023, and he will be able to talk with foreign clubs from January if no new deal is agreed before then.
Arsenal duo Ben White and Gabriel Magalhaes formed the first-choice centre-back pairing last year, but the former has now been shifted over to the right to accommodate William Saliba.
The 21-year-old is finally making his mark in North London after spending three years out on loan in France, and Arsenal are keen to tie him down to an improved contract.
Saliba is currently due to become a free agent in the summer of 2024, and Marseille desperately tried to convert his loan move into a permanent deal at the end of last season.
Arsenal are believed to be confident about their chances of agreeing a new contract with the France international as talks continue with his entourage, but Paris Saint-Germain are supposedly waiting in the wings if Saliba decides his future lies elsewhere.
Ben Knapton
