Arsenal target Unai Simon as Bernd Leno replacement

Arsenal were undone against a poor Everton side in their most recent outing from a worryingly familiar source. It was not the first time this season that Bernd Leno was guilty of a costly error, and reports coming out of Spain suggest Mikel Arteta’s patience is running thin.

Bernd Leno joining from Bayer Leverkusen for £22.5m should not go down as bad business. The German has not been a poor signing, at least not by Arsenal standards, but he has had severely disappointing moments amid superb patches of form.

Initially not a great deal was expected upon his arrival. Arsenal were signing someone with a track record of individual errors, and it was largely seen as them bringing in a good goalkeeper, not a great one.

In north London fans have been witness to both sides. Leno is a magnificent shot stopper boasting a catalogue of outstanding saves, the issue is that his album of mistakes continues to grow larger.

Arsenal target Unai Simon as Bernd Leno replacement in summer transfer window

As per La Razon in Spain, Arteta is not convinced. His decision to sell Emiliano Martinez over Leno was borne out of financial gain – you simply can’t turn down £20m in Arsenal’s position for a goalkeeper who barely had a kick in the Premier League – and he’s turned his sights on Unai Simon.

The highly-rated Spaniard is under contract with Athletic Club until 2025 and has no termination clause in his deal, which would be of concern were his club not aware of the potential financial gain from selling the 23-year-old.

Levante’s Aitor Fernandez has already been identified as his replacement, presenting Arsenal with an opportunity alongside the likes of fellow interested parties Borussia Dortmund, West Ham and Monaco.

Is this a knee-jerk reaction to Leno’s most recent blunder, or the culmination of mistakes making it clear this part of his game won’t be eradicated? Especially since he’s now 29 years old – his supposed peak.

Simon is an excellent stopper but won’t come cheap, and at a point where Arsenal have other areas of the squad in vital need of bolstering, goalkeeper is further down the list. Nonetheless, it can’t be avoided that Leno’s regular trend of errors are proving costly.

The buck will have to stop at some stage and the longer it continues the more forced Arteta’s hand will be.