Arsenal's pursuit of midfield reinforcements may need to be ramped up heading into the final few days of the January transfer window.

During Friday night's FA Cup defeat to Manchester City, Gunners boss Mikel Arteta was struck with fresh injury concerns as Thomas Partey was hauled off at half-time after experiencing "some discomfort" and the Spaniard is now awaiting the results of an MRI scan.

The influential powerhouse could join his backup Mohamed Elneny in the treatment room for the foreseeable future in what would be a gutting blow to the north Londoners' title hopes, with Gabriel Jesus still making his way back from injury too.

It means the need for a midfield signing before Tuesday's deadline is probably paramount to the Gunners' chances of success, with only Granit Xhaka and Albert Sambi Lokonga left available.

Arsenal have tried to sign Moises Caicedo over the weekend but have failed with two bids, the second of which totalling £60m plus £10m in add-ons, per the Daily Mail.

Both he and Declan Rice seem unlikely mid-season signings, so perhaps sporting director Edu Gaspar should elevate his interest in Vitoria Guimaraes star Ibrahima Bamba.

Sport Italia recently reported that the Gunners were shelving their interest in the 20-year-old until the summer but with Arteta's latest setback and interest from some top Serie A teams such as league leaders Napoli, he may need to make a big U-turn.

Also capable of playing in defence, Bamba would be an absolutely perfect alternative to Partey, with the Vitoria titan a complete monster.

When compared to other midfielders in FBref's 'next eight' divisions, the Italy-born beast ranks inside the top 1% for clearances (3.74), the top 10% for tackles (2.92) and the top 15% for interceptions (1.64) per 90, over the last year.

In the Premier League so far this term, Partey has averaged 2.3 tackles, 1.6 clearances and 1.2 interceptions, via WhoScored, which are similar returns to Bamba when you factor in the difference in the league and the team for which he's playing.

Despite his short career to date, the Italian has already caught the eye of his national team boss Roberto Mancini, who has invited him to train with the Azzurri in the past, which is perhaps why the midfielder has also been lauded as a "special talent" by journalist Zach Lowry.

As a machine that "provides a high volume of tackling and can play in a multitude of positions" - in the words of reporter Jacque Talbot - he could be the ideal man to fill that Partey-shaped void in Arteta's midfield, given the evidence and praise above.

Bamba has a €30m (£26m) release clause, so he'd cost a fraction of the price of Caicedo or Rice and that surely makes him an even better option before Tuesday's deadline.

As such, Edu must look to complete a move for the Vitoria sensation now, rather than in the summer.

AND in other news, Arsenal "had conversations" over signing £13m "special talent", he could be Saliba 2.0...