Arsenal ready to step up their interest in £40m-rated Germany international

Injury-hit Arsenal are reportedly ready to up their interest in £40 million-rated Valencia centre-back Shkodran Mustafi, according to the Daily Mail.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger had already been looking for a central defender after Per Mertesacker was ruled out for up to four months with a knee injury sustained in pre-season, and the Frenchman was dealt a further blow when Gabriel was stretchered off in the 3-2 friendly win against Manchester City on Sunday after damaging his ankle ligaments.

It means that the north London outfit have just one fit senior centre-half, Laurent Koscielny, ahead of their opening Premier League match of the campaign against Liverpool at the Emirates on Sunday, however the France international only returned to training on Sunday morning following an extended summer break as his nation reached the Euro 2016 final.

Wenger is now likely to dip into the transfer market this week, but he may have to cough up £40 million to sign top target Mustafi from Valencia.