Arsenal prepared to wait and steal Youri Tielemans on free transfer but risk losing Leicester midfielder to rivals
ARSENAL will attempt to sign Youri Tielemans on a free transfer when his Leicester contract expires in June, according to reports.
The Gunners were heavily linked with a swoop for the Belgian midfielder throughout the summer transfer window.
But, Mikel Arteta and sporting director Edu were reluctant to pay Leicester's £30million asking price.
Arsenal are still understood to be interested in tempting the Foxes ace to the Emirates, but according to they will wait until his current contract runs down.
Tielemans will become a free agent when his contract expires at the end of June unless he is sold for a cut-price fee during the January transfer window.
He could also have the opportunity to agree a pre-contract deal with a European club from next month, putting Arsenal's plans to sign him at risk.
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The Gunners will be able to begin negotiations with Tielemans after the final game of the Premier League season.
Leicester are already preparing for the midfielder's departure with a number of potential replacements lined up.
The Foxes have previously been linked with a move for out-of-favour Manchester United midfielder Donny van de Beek.
And they have also expressed an interest in signing Moroccan midfielder Azzedine Ounahi from Angers.
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Leicester are understood to be willing to pay up to £39.5m for the World Cup superstar.
The Foxes are expected to attempt to sign him next month with Angers open to the prospect of a deal.
However, the French side will want to keep him on loan until the end of the 2022-23 season.