Spanish newspaper Marca have today reported that Arsenal have made an offer for Real Madrid star Asier Illarramendi.

This comes off the news yesterday that Real Madrid had beaten Arsenal to the punch, over the signature for Cruzeiro midfielder Lucas Silva. Real Madrid had a bid of around €13million accepted for the midfielder following successful negotiations. This imminent signing has more or less spelled the end of Illarramendi’s time at the Bernabeu.

Illarramendi was a major prospect in La Liga after being signed from Real Sociedad, however he has been far from a runaway success at the club.

Athletic Club Bilbao are said to be suitors of the Madrid starlet who have reportedly offered €25million however the player himself does not seem too keen on the switch.

Marca however go on to say that Arsenal also have an offer on the table for the midfielder and according to the source, it is an offer Illarramendi “Would accept without thinking”.

The report states that the Madrid midfielder is excited by the thoughts of the Premier League and does not mind waiting for a summer switch to North London.

A major stumbling block in this deal however is the fact that it is rumoured the Gunners are unwilling to meet the offer placed by Athletic Club Bilbao of around €25million. It is believed that Illarramendi is going to take some time and see what plays out over the next few months and he is not packing his bags just yet.

Madrid would prefer to ship him off to a team in another league however the idea of selling him to the Gunners, at a lower price, displeases them.

He would certainly be a great addition to the squad however I’m not entirely sure if I can see Wenger paying that kind of money for him. I hope he does but who knows.