Arsenal and Edu are reportedly eyeing a shock summer deal involving Folarin Balogun and AC Milan midfielder Ismael Bennacer this summer.

The Lowdown: January target

Arsenal's interest in Bennacer was first reported back in December, as they were 'monitoring' his situation at Milan 'carefully' ahead of the January transfer window.

However, fellow Premier League rivals Liverpool and Chelsea are also thought to be in the race for his signature, while Milan themselves want to give him an improved contract, with his current deal set to expire in 2024.

Bennacer has changed agent since though, which could have potentially help force through a move away from the San Siro.

The Latest: Shock swap deal?

As per Italian news outlet Calciomercatoweb, the Gunners are continuing to monitor Bennacer 'very closely', with Mikel Arteta 'appreciating his qualities'.

They are willing to include Balogun as part of a swap deal to bring the former Arsenal youngster in, as Milan could look to sign an attacker given the 'uncertain future' of winger Rafael Leao.

The Verdict: Could be interesting...

While Balogun is doing so well on loan at Reims, as he scored his 17th goal in Ligue 1 over the weekend and now has 18 goals and two assists in total across competitions so far this season (Transfermarkt), he may still struggle to cement a regular place at the Emirates Stadium once he returns.

With Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah already in the squad, the striker may struggle for regular game time, and so the North London club could look to cash in on him this summer.

Meanwhile, they want to sign a new central midfielder in the next window, with West Ham United's Declan Rice and Brighton and Hove Albion's Moises Caicedo continuing to be strongly linked.

Bennacer could be an alternative option, and Arsenal could already hold an advantage given that he has played for the club before.

Indeed, the Algeria international played 32 times for them at youth level, and made one senior appearance in the League Cup back in the 2015/16 campaign (Transfermarkt).

Hailed as an ‘absolutely unbelievable‘ player by journalist Sam Tighe, the 25-year-old has really matured since then, and is now playing for one of the top clubs in Europe.

Thus, with Arsenal's need for a midfielder, and the fact that Balogun will hold a sizeable market value off the back of this impressive season, this could be an interesting swap deal to explore.