Ray Parlour on Arsenal pursuit of Leeds United's Illan Meslier and Sunderland's Jobe Bellingham | OneFootball

Ray Parlour has been speaking exclusively to Football League World

Former Arsenal favourite Ray Parlour has weighed in on the Gunners' reported interest in Leeds United goalkeeper Illan Meslier and Sunderland rising star Jobe Bellingham.

Parlour featured more than 300 times for the North Londoners across a 12-year spell that saw him win three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, and a League Cup.

He knows what it takes to succeed at Arsenal and, speaking exclusively to Football League World via NetBet Online Casino, he has weighed in on the EFL players linked with a move to the Emirates.

Jobe Bellingham should not be a priority for Arsenal

Bellingham has been one of the names dominating transfer headlines so far this month, with a host of bigger clubs keen on the Sunderland talent.

Arsenal have been named as one of the teams keen, with a fee in the region of £20 million touted, but the latest reports suggest the midfielder is likely to stay put until at least the summer.

The 19-year-old has been a star player for a Black Cats side that are battling for promotion to the Premier League and the Wearsiders will not want to lose him.

There is likely to be plenty of interest in Bellingham in the summer and Parlour was quizzed on whether Arsenal should try to skip the queue by pushing for a move this month.

He said: “Well if Jobe can be anything as good as Jude then he can most definitely be a player Arsenal could look at in the summer.

“If reports from the scouts are positive, then Mikel Arteta will be interested for sure.

“Depending on priorities for Mikel and also how they value Jobe, they could jump the summer queue, but a striker is the most important position Arsenal should look at right now.”

Illan Meslier not likely to join Arsenal

Meslier is another EFL player that has been linked with a move to the Emirates this month.

The French goalkeeper has been the subject of transfer speculation throughout his Leeds tenure but the latest Premier League talk comes at an interesting time, as he has made some costly mistakes that have hampered the Whites' promotion push this term.

Parlour has played down the chances of the 24-year-old making the move to North London any time soon, with David Raya establishing himself as Mikel Arteta's clear number one and Neto as cover.

He said: “I don’t think Meslier is likely to be an Arsenal player in the future. David Raya is number one and an outstanding goalkeeper.

“Neto looks like an adequate replacement for Raya, but I don’t see this happening at all.”