Arsenal Chatter Heats Up as Yann M’Vila Expected to Seal Rennes Exit

Monday, 20th August, 2012

France international midfielder Yann M’Vila looks set to leave Ligue 1 outfit Rennes this week, with Arsenal strongly tipped to be in the running for his signature.

According to Canal+, Rennes sporting director Pierre Dreossi has indicated that M’Vila played his last game for the club in Sunday’s 1-0 defeat at Bordeaux.

Rennes are in advanced discussions with Aston Villa to sign defensive midfielder Jean Makoun as a replacement for M’Vila, in a further sign that the Frenchman is heading for the exit door.

It is not known where M’Vila will end up, though his preferred destination is believed to be the English Premier League, where Arsenal are firm admirers of his talents, while Tottenham Hotspur recently made an approach to snap him up.

Spurs have since changed their mind on signing the 22-year-old, with manager Andre Villas-Boas admitting that while M’Vila was a target, the focus has now shifted towards signing a more creatively-minded player to replace Luka Modric.

The door has thus been left open for Arsene Wenger’s Gunners to steal in and secure M’Vila, who could find the perfect spot at the Emirates Stadium replacing Alex Song, who has been sold to Barcelona.

There are still sure to be other suitors for the Frenchman, but what is clear is that his time at Rennes is coming to an end, indicating that a deal has been lined up, even if his destination remains a closely guarded secret at present.

M’Vila has been linked with some of the biggest clubs in Europe over the last 12 months, including Italian giants Inter and Spanish champions Real Madrid.