Former Arsenal legend Emmanuel Petit warns the Gunners over their pursuit of Lyon midfield duo

Former Arsenal legend Emmanuel Petit has warned Arsenal of their pursuit of two Brazilian stars from French outfit Olympique Lyon. The Gunners have been strongly linked with young midfielder Bruno Guimaraes. However, there are reported links with his teammate and compatriot Lucas Paqueta.

But former Arsenal star Petit has warned the Arsenal management to be very careful of their pursuit of the two Brazilian stars and the quality that they will bring to the Emirates.

Mikel Arteta needs to bring in some reinforcements in midfield. The Gunners lost Ainsley Maitland-Niles on loan to AS Roma whereas midfielders Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny also left to serve their respective nations in the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations.

Petit wants Arsenal to not make same mistakes that they made in the last 10 years. Therefore he wants them to be very careful before roping in any of Lyon’s two midfielders.

“Bruno Guimaraes is a very talented player. He is a physical guy with very good technique, vision and mentality. But, they have been targeting players in the midfield position for the last 10 years and so many of them have come to the club only to leave again after two years. So, they need to be very, very careful about the profile of the players they look for, ” Petit told Bookmakers.co.uk

The former French star feels that both Bruno Guimaraes and Lucas Paqueta are very talented players. But he is unsure of their quality while playing at the highest level. Arsenal have tried bringing in reinforcements for some time now so Petit does not want the Gunners to make the same old mistake.

“I believe Guimaraes could be something good for Arsenal, just like his teammate at Lyon, Lucas Paqueta – who is a very good player as well. But, I still don’t know what both of them can do at the highest level,” the former French legend added.

Bruno Guimaraes has been exceptional for Lyon in midfield and his all-round abilities have attracted suitors from all over the globe. Similarly, Paqueta has revived his career at Lyon and is the highest goalscorer for the French outfit in the ongoing season.

It will be interesting to see if they land at the North London club and how they fit in Mikel Arteta’s system. However, signing both the players in one transfer window won’t be easy for the Gunners.