Newly crowned Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich will target Arsenal centre-back Laurent Koscielny in the summer, according to the Mail. Bayern will be managed by ex-Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola from next season and it is believed the French defender is on Guardiola's list of new recruits.

Laurent Koscielny
Reuters

Bayern are set to lose Belgian Daniel van Buyten in the summer and believe Koscielny will be an ideal replacement. The 27-year-old transferred to the Emirates in 2010 and has made 27 appearances, across all competitions, this season, with three goals.

Koscielny signed a long-term contract with Arsene Wenger's team last year and seems to have replaced Belgian Thomas Vermaelen in the Gunners' first team. It is therefore unlikely he will be allowed to leave the club. However, if Arsenal do not qualify for the Champions league next season, then the defender himself may be persuaded to force a move through to the Allianz Arena.

For now though, the Frenchman is keen to remain in north London. He explained: "I still have four years left on my contract after June. I feel good in the club - they have faith in me. I'm happy in London, my family too. I'm not thinking about [leaving]."

Meanwhile, the Gunners are believed to be searching for defensive reinforcements themselves and have been linked with Swansea City captain Ashley Williams and Olympique Marseille's Nicolas N'Koulou. Wenger is expected to have £70m in transfer funds this summer, for a complete revamp of the Emirates club's first team.

Arsenal travel to Norwich City this weekend, for a Premier League game, and they will hope to overtake, however temporarily, Chelsea and Tottenham in the race for a top four finish. The Blues and the Spurs do not play till midweek and next weekend, respectively, and are ahead of the Gunners by two points.

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