Mikel Arteta during Arsenal's win over Crystal Palace (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
Arsenal do not appear to have particularly busy plans for January, but they are said to be laying some foundations for potential exciting transfers in the future.
This is according to a report from athletewhich states that the Gunners will often do this work throughout the year, to ensure that they are in a strong position to snap up these young players if or when they decide to move on from their current clubs.
Arsenal decides to disdain Gyokeris for signing the Italian League star!
No specific names have been mentioned, and they may not be particularly big names anyway, but Arsenal fans will no doubt hope that the north London club can continue to prove a good destination for the best young players in the game.
We've seen Arsenal promote a number of players from their academy in recent times, and Bukayo Saka is undoubtedly the biggest success story.
However, there were also the likes of Eddie Nketiah and Miles Lewis Skelly, who also had spells in Chelsea's youth system before moving to the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal is working to sign young players before January
The Athletic reports that Arsenal were doing some work on deals of this kind before January, but it appears that could be the case. Quiet time in terms of first team signings.
Saka's current injury It certainly means that the AFC need to do something in the upcoming January window, otherwise it will be difficult to see them keeping pace with Liverpool in the race for the Premier League title.
However, we also know that Arsenal tend to plan for the long term rather than simply being reactive in the market, so it makes sense that this appears to be their current approach.
In the long term, if it means Mikel Arteta has another talent like Lewis Skelly to work with in a year or two, it could be worth it.
