Arsenal have been boosted in their pursuit of a replacement defender as reports in Italy suggest that Bologna fullback Aaron Hickey is ‘one step away’ from a switch to the Emirates.
The Scotsman only joined the Italian side in 2020 from Hearts, but has impressed in the Serie A this campaign, turning out 35 times for the I Rossoblù and scoring 5 times during the season that has seen them finish in midtable in Italy.
The Bologna footballer Aaron Hickey during the Roma-Bologna match at Olympic Stadium. Rome (Italy), May 1st, 2022 (Photo by Massimo Insabato/Archivio Massimo Insabato/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)
And, following their successful swoop for Takehiro Tomiyasu from the same club last summer, Mikel Arteta and Edu are looking to repeat the trick to bring Hickey, who is a left-back by trade but can play on either flank, to the Emirates Stadium this summer.
The process is moving smoothly too, with Calcio Mercato claiming that ‘a general agreement was found on 23/24 million plus bonuses’, which has left the defender ‘one step away from moving to the Premier League’.
Arsenal set to bolster young backline
Arsenal already boasted one of the youngest defences in the Premier League, but are set to bolster it further with the addition of Hickey and also the recall of William Saliba, himself only 21 years old.
The Frenchman has excelled on loan at Marseilles, racking up 51 appearances for the Ligue 1 side this season and being named their player of the month on three occasions.
He also picked up the Ligue 1 young player of the season, with the entire division recognising the efforts of a man who is yet to play for Arsenal.
UNFP Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year 🏆
William Saliba 💫
Congratulations, Willo 👏 pic.twitter.com/sh6h61GQ6k
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) May 15, 2022
His return, alongside Hickey’s arrival and the already solid back four of Kieran Tierney, Gabriel, Ben White and Tomiyasu, seems certain to stand the Gunners in good stead next season.
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Manchester City | 37 | 72 | 90 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 36 | 65 | 86 |
| 3 | Chelsea FC | 36 | 42 | 70 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 37 | 24 | 68 |
| 5 | Arsenal FC | 36 | 11 | 66 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 37 | 1 | 58 |
| 7 | West Ham United | 37 | 11 | 56 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 37 | -3 | 51 |
| 9 | Leicester City | 36 | 0 | 48 |
| 10 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 37 | -4 | 48 |
| 11 | Brentford FC | 37 | -7 | 46 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 36 | 4 | 45 |
| 13 | Aston Villa | 36 | -1 | 44 |
| 14 | Newcastle United | 36 | -21 | 43 |
| 15th | Southampton FC | 36 | -20 | 40 |
| 16 | Everton FC | 36 | -20 | 36 |
| 17 | Leeds United | 37 | -38 | 35 |
| 18 | Burnley FC | 36 | -18 | 34 |
| 19 | Watford FC | 37 | -42 | 23 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 37 | -56 | 22 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 22 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 21 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 18 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 16 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 15th |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 15th |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 15th |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 14 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 13 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 13 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 12 |
| Tony, Ivan | Brentford FC | 12 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 11 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 11 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 11 |
| Pukki, Teemu | Norwich City | 11 |
| Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa | 11 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City | 10 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 10 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 10 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 0 | 11 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 10 |
| Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 10 |
| Bednarek, Jan | Southampton FC | 0 | 10 |
| Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 10 |
| Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 9 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 10 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 10 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
| Moreno, Rodrigo | Leeds United | 0 | 9 |
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 9 |
| Mctominay, Scott | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
| Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 0 | 8 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 7 |
| Richarlison | Everton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 7 |
| James, Daniel | Leeds United | 1 | 7 |
| Alonso, Marcos | Chelsea FC | 0 | 8 |
| Norgaard, Christian | Brentford FC | 0 | 8 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 13 |
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 12 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 10 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 10 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City | 10 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 10 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 9 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 9 |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 9 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City | 8 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 8 |
| Kulusevski, Dejan | Tottenham Hotspur | 8 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 7 |
| Antonio, Michael | West Ham United | 7 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 7 |
| James, Rece | Chelsea FC | 7 |
| Mbeumo, Bryan | Brentford FC | 7 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 6 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 6 |