West Ham ‘desperate’ to land Arsenal’s £27m defender this summer amid Real Madrid interest

Arsenal failed to strengthen their side in the last transfer window, with bids for both Fiorentina's Dusan Vlahovic and Juventus' Arthur collapsing, while moves for the likes of Real Sociedad's Alexander Isak and Aston Villa's Douglas Luiz also failed to come to fruition.

Now, it looks like the Gunners could face a battle to hang on to their £27m defender William Saliba, who is currently on loan at Marseille, with West Ham United said to have a keen interest in the player.

Here's everything you need to know about the story:

What's the story?

According to French outlet Jeunes Footeux, via Sport Witness, claim the Hammers are "desperate" to sign the 20-year-old ace, and have made him a transfer "priority" ahead of this summer's transfer window.

It is suggested that Marseille would struggle to compete with West Ham to sign their current star loanee on a permanent deal, due a relative lack of financial strength. David Moyes' side are believed to be ready to part with around £25m to land their target.

The report also claims that the Hammers are likely to spend big this summer, after failing to secure a number of priority deals last month - most notably Benfica striker Darwin Nunez, whom the east London side pursued relentlessly on deadline day to no avail.

Why is Saliba in such high demand?

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta deemed the France U21 international surplus to requirements, and shipped him out on loan at the start of the season.

Now in his third temporary spell away in Ligue 1 on the trot, Saliba has really hit his stride this season, and his domineering displays at the back for Marseille has seen him become one of the most in-form defenders in the competition.

While PSG look set to reclaim their stranglehold on the Ligue 1 title this season, Marseille have been putting up a spirited fight for second place, and boast the joint-tightest defence in the league along with PSG and OGC Nice, and Saliba has played a pivotal role in this effort.

Blessed with formidable power and an ability to bring the ball out from defence, a confident Saliba at the peak of his powers is a force to be reckoned with.

Clearly, the Gunners still believe him to be a raw talent, but his development in Ligue 1 is continuing to turn heads, and there could well be a host of sides looking to snap him up this summer.

Who else are interested?

La Liga giants Real Madrid, as well as Serie A duo AC Milan and Inter are said to be keen admirers of Saliba, and could provide West Ham with some serious competition for his signature.

It would be fair to say that Arsenal, given their recent history in losing players for a fraction of what they paid for them - or nothing, in the case of Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang, Mesut Ozil, Callum Chambers et al. - will be eager to make a profit on Saliba, and the amount of interest in the player could well drive up his valuation.

The Gunners, of course, could opt to hang on to the former AS Saint-Etienne star, should Arteta be able to free up a space for him in the back line next season.