Arsenal set to beat Man United and Barcelona to "one of Europe's top midfielders"

Arsenal could beat Manchester United and Barcelona to the signing of Youri Tielemans, according to a report.

Tielemans has been linked to big European clubs for the past 12 months and Mikel Arteta's side may be his final destination.

The Leicester City midfielder, who scored one of the most historic goals in the Foxes' history last year to win his side the FA Cup, is out of contract at the end of the season.

According to Belgian outlet Voetbal Primeur, the midfielder has an agreement in place to join Arsenal next summer when his current deal expires.

Last year, Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers described Belgium international Tielemans as one of "Europe's top midfielders".

"He is integral to our game and a joy to work with — a super professional. A young player with that focus is great to see," said Rodgers, who ruled out selling Tielemans at the time.

“It's not something we are thinking of and not anything the club have said we need to do," added Rodgers.

“We don't want to be offloading our best players, that's for sure.

“So there has been no hint or indication we need to generate money and move him on. But, of course, there's a business side to the club that they will look at.

(Image via: Alamy)

“We have a number of players out of contract come the end of the season. My focus has been on working with him and getting out of the situation we are in. So everything else is not really spoken about from my perspective.

“We had a number of long chats in the summer. There is clearly no doubt even a young guy who is clearly focused like Youri and very professional, it can have an impact. But he has been fully focused.

“He doesn't let that affect him. He is a top-class professional. He sees the game how I see it. On the field he understands what is happening within the game and that's all he can do, give his very best. His recent performances have been excellent.”

Tielemans has had a relatively quiet start to the season but then again, Leicester have not been at their best.

They have, however, managed to turn things around in recent weeks and have climbed the table after being bottom.