Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is very keen to land Leicester midfielder Youri Tielemans this summer, claims journalist Pete O'Rourke.

The Spanish coach wants to strengthen his squad after the Gunners narrowly missed out on Champions League qualification, and he has identified Tielemans as a transfer target.

What's the latest news involving Tielemans?

The 49-cap international's contract at the King Power Stadium will run out in 2023, and Tielemans could be offloaded ahead of next season to ensure that the Foxes get a transfer fee.

According to The Telegraph, Arteta wants the club's board to put in a £25m bid for the Belgian to test the waters, even though he is valued at £60m by CIES.

Meanwhile, Tottenham are also believed to be interested in Tielemans, as reported by ESPN.

Chelsea CLOSE to signing Jules Kounde! Hear more on The Football Terrace...

What has O'Rourke said about Tielemans?

O'Rourke has confirmed that Arteta is a big admirer of Tielemans, and he feels Leicester will be open to the midfielder leaving in the off-season.

When asked whether Arsenal should be confident of beating Tottenham to Tielemans' signature, despite losing out to their rivals in the top-four race, O'Rourke told GIVEMESPORT: “I think so. He’s a big target for Mikel Arteta. He is calling on the club to firm up their interest in Tielemans, and try to get a deal done as soon as possible. It does look like Leicester will cash in on him this summer with his contract expiring next summer, so they don’t want to risk losing him on a free transfer.”

Would Tielemans go straight into Arsenal's starting line-up?

Arteta largely relied on Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka to cover the two deeper midfield roles in his 4-2-3-1 formation this season.

The former had a positive campaign, and was the side's second-best player, according to WhoScored, as he received an average match rating of 6.90. However, his injury woes came back to haunt him when he missed the final weeks of the run-in.

Xhaka had a steady season, but only earned a 6.67 average game rating from WhoScored, some way down on the 6.90 that Tielemans recorded.

Tielemans also has the clear edge when it comes to making telling contributions in the final third as he registered 10 goal involvements, whereas Partey and Xhaka managed just six between them.

Looking at the numbers, Tielemans appears to have slightly more well-rounded game, meaning he would be capable of replacing Xhaka, or he could step in for Partey if his injury problems resurface.