Ray Parlour believes Arsenal should sign John Stones from Manchester City

 

Arsenal legend Ray Parlour believes the Gunners should look into the signing of John Stones from Manchester City this summer. The England international has fallen out-of-favour at the Cityzens over the past year and he was restricted to only 16 appearances during the course of the previous Premier League campaign.

Hence, he has been touted to head for the exit door this summer and Parlour feels the Gunners should compete with West Ham United for his services as he could be available for an affordable price, he told TalkSPORT: “That would be a great deal for West Ham if they can get him for £20m, especially when you look at Ake who is going to City for £40m. Arsenal are desperate for a centre-half… why don’t you take your chance and try and go in and bid for Stones? He’s had a bad time in recent years and he hasn’t really gone to where they thought he might go to.”

The north London giants are expected to be without Shkodran Mustafi, Calum Chambers and Pablo Mari for the start of next season with injuries and Mikel Arteta has acknowledged that the club may need to recruit another central defender. So far, they have been heavily linked with a move for Gabriel Magalhaes from Lille and reports claim that the Brazilian would favour a switch to the club.

Still, Stones could emerge as an option, particularly if he is available for the cut-price £20m fee mentioned in the media. Arteta worked with Stones when he was the assistant manager of the Cityzens and he should have a good idea on the player’s abilities. It remains to be seen where the Englishman’s future lies next season. The Cityzens have recently purchased Nathan Ake from Bournemouth and that could drop Stones further down the pecking order, suppose he stays put with the club next term.