Arsenal ace Kieran Gibbs wanted by Watford boss Marco Silva but will not meet £15m valuation
Hornets are after a new full-back as new boss Marco Silva looks to reshape the Vicarage Road squad inherited from Walter Mazzarri
WATFORD are stepping up efforts to sign Arsenal defender Kieran Gibbs.
New Hornets boss Marco Silva is on the hunt for a new left back and has earmarked the England international as one his main summer targets.
But the report Watford have baulked at the £15 million valuation Arsenal have slapped on Gibbs who has just a year left on his £60,000-a-week contract.
The defender has risen through the ranks at the Emirates under Arsene Wenger and was dubbed the long-term successor to Ashley Cole when he moved to Chelsea.
Now his future at the Emirates is uncertain following the signing of Sead Kolasinac on a free transfer from Schalke.
But with no agreement in sight, Gibbs could be seen as surplus to requirements if the Gunners hierarchy want to generate cash to help fund new recruits this summer.
The 27-year-old featured in just 11 Premier League games last term in another frustrating season for the defender who has a big decision to make about his long-term future.
Stoke and Brighton are monitoring the situation, but Arsenal chiefs and the defender may have to lower their financial demands to conclude a deal.
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Gibbs is another player who falls into the category of needing to play regular football next season to have any chance of going to the World Cup in Russia next year.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Oliver Giroud will also want to play more football to seal their places on the plane next summer.
Silva has also been tracking his former Hull left-back Andrew Robertson, but faces competition from Liverpool for the Scottish International.
Hornets striker Stefano Okaka could be heading out of Vicarage Road with Chinese Super League outfit Shanghai Shenhua prepared to offer a lucrative deal to move to the Far East.
