Barcelona could offer Philippe Coutinho to Arsenal in exchange for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, according to reports.
The Gabon international signed a lucrative new three-year contract at the Emirates Stadium last summer.
Aubameyang then went on to have a disappointing season, scoring only 10 goals in the Premier League.
He was not involved as Arsenal slumped to a 2-0 defeat by Brentford on Friday night.
Both he and Alexandre Lacazette were purportedly ill, although Mikel Arteta’s pre-match comments suggested there might be more to the story.
Reports over the weekend suggested the Gunners were prepared to listen to offers for the 32-year-old.
And one emanating from Catalonia may soon be put in front of them.
According to Sky Sports, Barcelona want to bring Aubameyang to the Camp Nou as they seek to bolster their attacking options for the campaign ahead.
Martin Braithwaite scored twice as Ronald Koeman’s beat Real Sociedad 4-2 at the weekend, but Barcelona are nevertheless looking to sell the Denmark international.
The Blaugrana have set their sights on Aubameyang as a potential replacement, although their financial issues mean they would struggle to afford a sizable transfer fee.
Instead Barcelona are weighing up a swap deal which would took Coutinho to the Emirates Stadium.
The Brazilian has struggled to live up to expectations with the La Liga side and is deemed surplus to requirements by Koeman.
Barcelona, who are £1.15bn in debt, might struggle to match Aubameyang’s present £350,000-a-week wages.
But the Gabonese forward, who was eligible to represent Spain at international level, may be willing to take a pay cut to join Barcelona.
He has made no secret of his desire to one day play in La Liga, and this could be his last opportunity to do so.
From Arsenal’s perspective the purported deal looks positive, provided they can find another option up front.
Coutinho is younger than Aubameyang and has Premier League experience, while the Gunners are currently on the lookout for an attacking midfielder.
Could this be one of those rare deals which suits all parties?
