Arsenal Prepare Move for Schalke Right-Back Atsuto Uchida

Arsenal are preparing a move for Schalke right-back Atsuto Uchida in the summer as replacement for Bacary Sagna, according to the Mirror.

The defender has impressed this season and has caught the eye of clubs across Europe with Arsenal now preparing a move for the 26-year-old to fill the void left by Sagna's departure.

The Japan international has a plethora of experience playing for his country and will be a good addition to the squad which is losing one of their most reliable players, after having served the club for over seven years.

Arsene Wenger is impressed by his energy levels and was considering a move for him last summer but decided against it with Sagna extending his stay with the north London club. The Gunners are also keeping an eye on Toulouse defender Serge Aurier and Atletico Madrid right-back Juanfran.

Arsenal have also been linked with Southampton defender Calum Chambers and are likely to push hard for a defender in the summer to prepare for a title challenge next season.

Meanwhile, Mikel Arteta has hailed Mauricio Pochettino and Pep Guardiola for having an influence on him during his career alongside Arsene Wenger. The Spaniard played under Pochettino when he was at PSG and insists that the Argentine had all the qualities to be a top manager.

"Arsène Wenger, of course – he has a philosophy that he's never going to change because he really believes in it. That is the most important thing, because if you don't really believe in something then you'll just change it after one bad result and drive your players crazy," Arteta told www.arsenal.com.

"Another is Pep Guardiola, who I've known since I was 15. The way he sees football is always to look ahead, then further ahead, always improving. Then there's Mauricio Pochettino – he was my captain at PSG and I always knew he would become a manager.

"He has taken a lot of influence from Marcelo Bielsa, who was his coach with Argentina; they used to talk about things a lot, and now you can see that his teams are really aggressive, both when attacking and defending.

"He takes a lot of risks, the players enjoy playing for him, his decisions are always sound and he's got a good personality. I've admired Pochettino ever since I was young; he really looked after me when I was at PSG as well," he concluded.