Arsenal line up summer move for Shakhtar Donetsk’s Manor Solomon

Arsenal are monitoring the Shakhtar Donetsk winger Manor Solomon with a view to making the Ukrainian club an offer in the summer.

Solomon is a 21-year-old winger whose stock has risen rapidly after a succession of eye-catching Champions League performances in the past two seasons. The Guardian understands Arsenal have held initial talks with the player’s camp, having scouted him heavily, and may firm up their interest during pre-season.

The past 15 months have brought a breakthrough at the highest level for Solomon, who scored against Real Madrid in both of Shakhtar’s shock wins against the La Liga club having also been on target when they visited Manchester City in November 2019. He scored a brilliant winner for Israel in their Nations League win over Scotland two months ago and has attracted the attention of numerous clubs in bigger leagues.

Solomon, who can play across the front line, is likely to stay put in the current window. Arsenal will not have the funds to make expensive purchases this winter unless an unforeseen number of departures take place, and acquiring Solomon would take a substantial fee given his contract expires in December 2023. But the picture could well look different after May and Mikel Arteta remains keen to freshen up a squad that, despite its recent upturn, has struggled to convince for most of the season.

One of Arteta’s existing young forwards, Gabriel Martinelli, has been given a boost by news that his ankle injury is not serious. There were concerns Martinelli could face a lengthy spell on the sidelines after he went down in pain during the warm-up to Arsenal’s FA Cup third-round tie with Newcastle on Saturday. He was pulled out of the starting XI and Arteta said after the game that he had found the player in tears.

However, a scan on Monday found no major damage. Although the 19-year-old will miss Thursday’s match against Crystal Palace, there is a strong chance he will be available when Newcastle return to the Emirates for a Premier League fixture next Monday.

Arsenal have confirmed that Rob Holding has signed a new contract. The centre-back’s deal will run until 2024, with an extra year’s option.