Mikel Arteta can complete his Arsenal defence by signing Hato | OneFootball

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta can complete his defence with the signing of Ajax wonderkid Jorrel Hato.

The Gunners have been following the 18-year-old’s progress over the last year and Fabrizio Romano reports they are ‘pushing‘ to land his signature this summer.

The club believe they are ‘front-runners’ to sign him despite his recent contract extension and he would be a quality addition to the back four.

Hato is a central defender by trade, but he is also capable of playing at left-back. The youngster has made over one-third of his senior appearances in the role.

His versatility is a prime reason behind the Gunners’ interest and the teenager has all the attributes to become the mainstay from left-back.

Hato has completed 93 percent of his passes this term. He has won an impressive 2.1 tackles alongside 5.5 ground and aerial duels per appearance.

The youngster has also made 5.7 ball recoveries on average with 2.4 clearances. He is not necessarily an attack-minded left-back but has plenty of time to develop his skills.

Since the turn of the year, Arteta has asked Ben White to invert from right-back. This has brought out the best in the Englishman, who has contributed seven goals.

Oleksandr Zinchenko, Jakub Kiwior and Takehiro Tomiyasu have taken turns to start at left-back. None of them have been defensively consistent over a stretch of games.

This has become a problematic position for the Gunners. Hato would be a fantastic solution this summer, but Arsenal may have to pay a premium fee to persuade Ajax to sell.

The Dutch wonderkid recently signed a new contract until June 2028. The Eredivisie outfit may demand €50 million or more to part ways with him.

Zinchenko looks a likely candidate to leave this summer, having fallen out of favour. Arsenal could also contemplate the sale of Kiwior if they spend big on Hato.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com & Sofascore.com.