Virgil Van Dijk Close to £50m Gunners Move After Meeting With Arsenal Officials

The Virgil van Dijk transfer saga has taken another twist after the Dutchman met with representatives from Arsenal over a possible summer move. The 26-year-old

The Virgil van Dijk transfer saga has taken another twist after the Dutchman met with representatives from Arsenal over a possible summer move.

The 26-year-old defender was heavily linked with a move to Liverpool at the start of the transfer window and had it not been for claims that the Reds had been tapping-up the Southampton star, van Dijk would likely already be at Anfield.

Arsenal have pounced on the opportunity to convince van Dijk of a move to the Emirates with less than one week left before the transfer window closes, holding a meeting with the defender and his representatives, according to Fox Sports News producer James Dodd.

#AFC have met with Van Dijk & his reps but I'm fairly sure all the big PL clubs have. I guess Saints would rather sell to us than Liverpool

— James Dodd (@JamesDodd89) August 24, 2017

With the move to Liverpool seemingly off, a host of Premier League rivals have jumped at the chance to sign the defender. Chelsea have most notably rivalled Liverpool in the hunt for van Dijk's signature and it is understood that the Saints are willing to sell to another Premier League side as long as it is not Liverpool.

Arsenal fans have been crying out for their squad to be strengthened further this summer. Having already broken their transfer record to secure the signing of Alexandre Lacazette, as well as snapping up Bosnian full-back Sead Kolašinac on a free transfer, the Gunners look to be just one or two players away from mounting a serious title challenge this season.

David Rogers/GettyImages

Arsenal's defeat to Stoke City last week appears to be the kick they needed to re-enter the transfer market this summer. Fans are also calling for their club to sign a central midfielder, eager for Granit Xhaka to have a more established partner this season.

Although Arsenal's pursuit of van Dijk will be welcomed by fans in north London, one major worry around the club's transfer policy is the way they are reactive and not proactive. Despite the signings of Lacazette and Kolašinac coming early this summer, Arsenal have yet again waited for a Premier League embarrassment to rectify an obvious gap in their squad.