Arsenal latest: Mikel Arteta urged to make Bukayo Saka call and summer signing being 'worked on'

• Arsenal
• Arsenal News
• Arsenal

Arsenal round-up as Mikel Arteta is told to take decisive action and the Gunners makes plans for the future

Arsenal's pursuit of the Premier League title resumes on Saturday when they welcome Everton to the Emirates Stadium.

Following a hard-fought draw away to Bayer Leverkusen, the Gunners remain in the hunt for a historic quadruple. Arsenal required a late penalty from Kai Havertz against his former employers to secure a 1-1 stalemate.

Mikel Arteta will be expecting a sharper performance against the Toffees and in the return fixture. The head coach acknowledged: "The level of execution obviously has to be better."

It promises to be a stern test against an Everton outfit pursuing European qualification under David Moyes. Here's a summary of the latest Arsenal developments ahead of this weekend's action...

FOLLOW OUR ARSENAL FB PAGE! Latest Gunners news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page

Saka replacement

Bukayo Saka should be omitted from Arsenal's starting XI, according to former Premier League forward Charlie Austin. The England international's disappointing recent performances continued against Leverkusen, where he failed to influence proceedings before being withdrawn for Noni Madueke after 60 minutes.

Madueke delivered an energetic cameo and earned the late spot-kick that Havertz dispatched. Austin believes the ex-Chelsea wideman now warrants a starting berth ahead of Saka.

Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: "When he's come on, the performances he's been putting in warrant starting. But the issue he has is the fact Arsenal's Starboy plays in the same position as him. It's going to take the manager to make a brave decision to make that change.

"If I'm Noni Madueke, I'm asking that question, 'What more can I do?' Because when he came on, he changed the game in Arsenal's favour. He got on the ball, ran at defenders and made things happen. In the time Saka was on the pitch, he didn't."

'Working on deal'

Arsenal have reportedly intensified their pursuit of RB Leipzig centre-back Castello Lukeba. The Gunners are understood to have monitored the French defender during recent Bundesliga fixtures and have been sufficiently impressed to start investigating a potential summer move.

L'Equipe claims that Arsenal are 'working' to secure Lukeba's signature and have initiated preliminary discussions, though it is unclear whether these conversations involve the club directly or the player's representatives.

The 23-year-old appears destined to depart Germany when the transfer window reopens, with the Premier League or La Liga understood to be his preferred destinations. Previous reports suggested Lukeba possessed a release clause in the region of £78million, a substantial sum for a defender who would likely find it challenging to displace William Saliba or Gabriel Magalhaes in the starting XI, at least in the short term.

However, more recent updates indicate that Leipzig would now accept an offer of between £50m and £60m. Lukeba has been plying his trade in Germany since his move from Lyon in 2023.