Arsenal Transfer Rumors 2018: Gunners Interested in Hamburg's Josha Vagnoman

By Noriel See, Christian Post Contributor Thursday, February 15, 2018

Arsenal seem to be keeping an eye on one of the top up-and-coming full-backs in Germany.

According to The Sun's Phil Cadden, the Gunners have reportedly been monitoring the progress of Hamburger SV's 17-year-old prodigy Josha Vagnoman.

"Gunners head of recruitment Sven Mislintat has watched the Hamburg teen star - valued at £2.66m - on a number of occasions," Cadden said in his report.

"Vagnoman trained with Hamburg's first team squad last week and the Bundesliga outfit wanted to include him in the clash versus Borussia Dortmund. But, although Hamburg have tried to tie him down a professional contract for some time, Vagnoman cannot play in the first team until he signs pro forms," he continued.

"Vagnoman is versatile and can play both left and right full back," he added.

Vagnoman has shown a lot of promise, and he represented Germany at the Under-17 World Cup in India last summer. Germany would lose to Brazil in the quarterfinal stage of the tournament, but Vagnoman turned a lot of heads with his performance, and it seemed inevitable that big clubs would eventually come calling for his services.

Aside from Arsenal, reigning Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Chelsea are reportedly interested in Vagnoman as well, so a bidding war may ensue in the summer. The German full-back get the chance to shine if he joins Arsenal because Gunners manager Arsène Wenger has always had a reputation for being a nurturer of young talent.

Meanwhile, The Sun's Mike McGrath has reported that Arsenal have expressed interest in signing Stoke City goalkeeper Jack Butland.

Butland would be an interesting option as a replacement for the aging Petr Čech, and he is worth a look this offseason. However, McGrath said the Gunners would likely have to go head-to-head with Liverpool for his signature because the Reds are also targeting him.