Arsenal planning bid for ex-Manchester United defender

Arsenal are reportedly plotting a summer approach to sign former Manchester United defender Jonny Evans from West Bromwich Albion.

The Northern Irishman is presently available for just £3m, courtesy of a relegation release clause in his Baggies contract which has now become active, The Star reports.

Arsenal failed with a £10m part-exchange deal involving Mathieu Debuchy last winter but they are now said to have revived their pursuit after knowing of his relatively cheaper price.

League rivals Manchester City have also been credited with an interest in Evans in the past but the Gunners now appear to have a clear route with the Citizens having spent a club-record sum on Aymeric Laporte in January.

The Gunners are expected to witness a major overhaul of their central defensive department during the summer and this could witness the departure of Shkodran Mustafi, who has underperformed this term.

Mustafi has been prone to a number of defensive errors over the course of the 2017/18 campaign and he could be shown the exit door alongside Laurent Koscielny, though the latter is nursing a long-term Achilles problem.