Arsenal fans in the Transfer Tavern are getting merry on ale, looking ahead to the summer transfer window. 

It remains one of great mystery at the moment, with Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez yet to extend their contracts beyond summer 2018 and Arsene Wenger’s generation-spanning tenure potentially coming to an end.

But if there’s one thing the north London club should already have on their summer agenda, our landlord reckons it should be a swoop for Lyon’s exciting young forward Nabil Fekir, who Transfermarkt.com value at £10.2million.

The Frenchman’s been rated as one of Ligue 1’s more exciting talents for a while now and seems ready to take his career to the next level, having experienced top flight, Champions League and international football during his time at Parc Olympique Lyonnais.

And just in case our Arsenal patrons aren’t convinced by the idea of a summer swoop for the 23-year-old, our landlord’s come up with three major reasons why the Emirates outfit must try to sign him.

Competition for Mesut Ozil

Let’s face it, Mesut Ozil just hasn’t produced to the levels expected since becoming Arsenal’s club-record signing and it’s time the Gunners get serious about the matter. With his contract due to expire at the end of next season, the obvious suggestion would be to sell, but bringing in a player truly capable of competing for Ozil’s No.10 spot could be a smarter strategy, bucking the German World Cup winner’s ideas up whilst improving the depth of the squad. Is it worth making a signing just to motivate a current player? Perhaps not, but Fekir can play in other positions – he’s started up front for Lyon seven times this term and scored thrice – so it’s not a case of simply choosing between Ozil and Fekir for every match.

Consistently strong form

Fekir’s been one of Lyon’s key players for a few seasons now, picking up Ligue 1’s Young Player of the Year award for 2014/15, and he’s producing strong form once again this term. Whilst a return of six goals and three assists in 18 starts may not seem like astounding output for an attacking player, his averages are impressive with 2.1 shots, 2.4 key passes, 2 dribbles and 2 accurate crosses per match. That’s more than eight attacking actions per game, six of which could directly lead to a goal. Certainly not bad for a 23-year-old.

Built for the Premier League

The French top flight has gained a bit of a reputation for producing future Premier League stars and there’s a good reason for that – they develop not only technically gifted but also physically resolute youngsters. Nabil Fekir fits that profile; whilst he’s not the tallest at 5 foot 8, he’s quick with a stocky, powerful frame. There are certainly stronger and quicker players in the Premier League but Fekir at least has the natural athleticism to compete with them and Arsenal have often been accused of lacking physicality throughout their starting XI.