Arsenal ‘targeting star dubbed the next William Saliba’ with Mikel Arteta hoping to strengthen in defence following injuries to Jurrien Timber and Ben White

Arsenal are looking to add to their defensive options by signing promising Valencia defender Yarek Gasiorowski, according to reports.

Mikel Arteta is keen to bring in another centre-back following injuries suffered by Jurrien Timber and Ben White, and the highly-rated 18-year-old appears to fit the bill. 

Gasiorowski has made four appearances for Valencia’s first team this season, recently coming off the bench in a heavy 5-1 defeat to Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.

He is also a regular for Spain at youth level, featuring 16 times for the under-19 side, and Gasiorowski even scored a hat-trick from centre-back in a European Championship qualifier against Moldova. 

AS are now reporting that Arteta and Arsenal are ready to make a move for the  young defender. 

The youngster made his debut for Valencia this season and has since made four appearances for the La Liga club

Mikel Arteta is looking to add to his defensive options to help bolster a backline that has only conceded 10 goals in the Premier League so far this term

The north London club were rumoured to be interested in Gasiorowski’s services several seasons ago, only for Brexit regulations to scupper a deal. 

Instead the defender has established himself at Valencia, with his first start coming in the Copa Del Rey at the start of November against UD Logrones. 

He has been restricted to substitute appearances in the league so far but that has not stopped him catching the eye of the Premier League giants. 

Speaking after making his debut from the bench against Mallorca, Gasiorowski said: ‘I’m fulfilling the dreams that you’ve longed for since you were a child, like making your debut with the first team at the club where you grew up.

‘I remember that in the 50th minute, I went to warm up and it was the 90th minute and it looked like nothing was going to happen. Then, suddenly I saw that Thierry [Correia] couldn’t go on and [Valencia manager, Ruben] Baraja told me to change quickly because he was going to come off. I’ve kept the shirt from that moment.’

Gasiorowski has two years left on his current contract with the La Liga club, and a £17.5million release clause could tempt potential suitors to make a move for him in the near future.

Arsenal’s defence has been weakened by a serious knee injury sustained by summer signing Jurrien Timber

Ben White also missed the recent win against Burnley, with Arteta admitting that the Englishman had been playing with an injury ‘for weeks’

Arsenal’s defensive options have been restricted since Timber picked up a serious knee injury on the opening day of the season against Nottingham Forest. 

Arteta also revealed after the recent win against Burnley that fellow defender White had been playing with an injury ‘for weeks’, resulting in him being left out for the victory against the Clarets. 

Regular centre-back pairing William Saliba and Gabriel have helped Arsenal to the joint-best defensive record in the league so far this term, with the Gunners conceding just 10 goals as they look to keep pace with table-toppers Manchester City. 

Their defence could be set to be improved further by the addition of Gasiorowski in the upcoming January transfer window.