EXCLUSIVE: Arsenal scouts fly to Germany to watch Zinchenko replacement

Steve Kay

• Updated: 6 Jun 2024 11:39 BST
• 3 min read

Exclusive

Arsenal are eyeing Germany international Maximilian Mittelstadt ahead of the summer transfer window, FootballTransfers has been told.

As the Gunners gear up for another Premier League title race with Manchester City, the side are looking to fine-tune their squad, with Mikel Arteta set to be significantly backed, as previously reported.

While not the top priority, bolstering the left-back position is on the agenda for Arsenal, with uncertainty around the future of Kieran Tierney.

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Sources indicate that Arsenal scouts plan to fly to Munich to watch 27-year-old Mittelstadt in action during the opening fixture of the Euros, where Germany face Scotland at the Allianz Arena on June 14th.

The Gunners are in search of a specialist left-back capable of inverting into midfield and joining the attack, similar to the role of Oleksandr Zinchenko.

Mittelstadt has been in spectacular form this season for VfB Stuttgart and is expected to be a key player for Germany at Euro 2024 on home soil.

How good is Maximilian Mittelstadt?

Mittelstadt is product of Hertha BSC's youth academy. He would go on to make 157 appearances for the Old Lady, but in hindsight, he may regret staying on board for as long as he did.

Hertha had been a mess for years, a rudderless ship, which eventually culminated in relegation to the 2. Bundesliga in 2022/23. Only after Hertha's demotion did Mittelstadt decide to jump ship, joining Stuttgart in the summer of 2023 for just €500,000. It turned out to be an absolutely spectacular piece of business.

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Head coach Sebastian Hoenes has built something special at Stuttgart and he has given Mittelstadt a platform to shine. The marauding left-back is ideal for Hoenes's system and playing in said system has allowed the 27-year-old to thrive.

His form saw him rewarded with a first call-up to Germany's national team during the March 2024 international break and Mittelstadt immediately slotted into the starting line-up and didn't look out of place against France and the Netherlands, even scoring against the latter.

Now he looks a shoo-in to start at Euro 2024 on home soil and has arguably been Europe's best left-back this season.