According to reports by Spanish media outlet Diario Gol, Arsenal are among the clubs interested in signing Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic, who is rated at €45m (approximately £39.7m) according to Transfermarkt, in the summer following the arrival of Philippe Coutinho at the Camp Nou over the weekend.

What's the word, then?

Well, even though the Croatia international has been a regular for the La Liga leaders this season, Diario Gol says that he fears the signing of Coutinho will limit his playing time for the rest of this campaign and the next one, and he is exploring leaving in the summer.

Diario Gol claims that the Gunners, Premier League rivals Liverpool and Juventus all have offers on the table for the 29-year-old, but that he would prefer to wait until after representing his country at the World Cup in Russia this summer in order to receive more offers.

The report adds that an exit isn't definite, and if the midfielder continues to play regularly in the second-half of the current season then he won't be looking to move on.

How has Rakitic done this season?

He has done well, and showed his versatility.

The Croatian has often played in either a central or defensive midfield role for Barca this term, scoring one goal and providing a further three assists in 28 appearances in all competitions.

The 29-year-old started four of their six Champions League group stage matches – coming off of the substitutes' bench in the other two – with his sole goal of the campaign coming in the impressive 3-0 win against Juventus on the opening matchday.

According to WhoScored.com, Rakitic has shown the quality he has on the ball with an average passing accuracy of 90.6% in La Liga and in Europe, while he has made 25 key passes in 24 outings across those two competitions.

Would he be a good signing for Arsenal?

He certainly could be, and he may even be handed a more offensive role if he did join the Gunners.

With Arsene Wenger already having the likes of Granit Xhaka and Aaron Ramsey available to him in the middle, he may see Rakitic appearing in a more attacking position if he does bring the Croatian to the Emirates.

One concern for the north London outfit could be that he wouldn't really be a signing for the future given he turns 30 years of age in March, but there is no doubting the ability he has on the ball and Arsenal will need guaranteed quality if the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil have left by the summer.

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