The Gunners had a £20m bid for the 19-year-old turned down by the Bundesliga side over the summer.
Manager Arsene Wenger is now prepared to break the club's transfer record to land the German international, according to the Daily Mail.
Meanwhile, the Premier League side is still heavily linked with a move for Cologne striker Lukas Podolski.
Restore Data
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | PTS | |
| 1 | Liverpool | 15 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 31 | 13 | 18 | 36 |
| 2 | Chelsea | 15 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 35 | 18 | 17 | 31 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 16 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 29 | 15 | 14 | 30 |
| 4 | Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest | 16 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 21 | 19 | 2 | 28 |
| 5 | Manchester CityMan City | 15 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 27 | 21 | 6 | 27 |
| 6 | Aston Villa | 16 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 24 | 25 | -1 | 25 |
| 7 | Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton | 15 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 25 | 22 | 3 | 24 |
| 8 | Bournemouth | 15 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 23 | 20 | 3 | 24 |
| 9 | Fulham | 16 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 24 | 22 | 2 | 24 |
| 10 | Brentford | 15 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 31 | 28 | 3 | 23 |
| 11 | Newcastle UnitedNewcastle | 16 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 23 | 21 | 2 | 23 |
| 12 | Tottenham HotspurSpurs | 15 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 31 | 19 | 12 | 20 |
| 13 | Manchester UnitedMan Utd | 15 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 19 | 18 | 1 | 19 |
| 14 | West Ham UnitedWest Ham | 15 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 20 | 28 | -8 | 18 |
| 15 | Everton | 15 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 14 | 21 | -7 | 15 |
| 16 | Leicester CityLeicester | 16 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 21 | 34 | -13 | 14 |
| 17 | Crystal Palace | 15 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 14 | 20 | -6 | 13 |
| 18 | Ipswich TownIpswich | 16 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 16 | 28 | -12 | 12 |
| 19 | Wolverhampton WanderersWolves | 16 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 24 | 40 | -16 | 9 |
| 20 | Southampton | 15 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 11 | 31 | -20 | 5 |
| > Premier League Full Table | |||||||||
