Arsenal FC eye a shock move for Mario Yepes

Having recently been linked with a shock move to sign Nikola Zigic, Arsenal have now been touted to make another surprise swoop by snapping up Colombian veteran defender Mario Yepes in the coming days.

While Arsenal certainly enjoyed a fruitful transfer window, manager Arsene Wenger surprised many by not electing to bring in a new central defender to negate the loss of Thomas Vermaelen this summer.

The duo of Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny are admittedly one the best central defensive pairings in the Premier League but Arsenal do not possess much in terms of backup if either one of them suffers an injury.

Young Calum Chambers has done well so far but there is a feeling that Arsenal could regret not signing an established defender as cover for the duo of Mertesacker and Koscielny.

Arsenal have failed to sign a replacement for Thomas Vermaelen

That being said, all is not lost for Arsenal as it has now emerged that Wenger is planning a shock swoop to sign veteran Mario Yepes. The defender is currently a free transfer following his release by Atalanta at the end of last season and now according to reports emerging from Colombia, Arsenal have made an approach in an attempt to snap up the 38-year old.

Despite his advancing years, Yepes was one of the best defenders at the 2014 FIFA World Cup and played an integral role in Colombia’s fine campaign to the Quarter Finals.

As a result, strange as it may sound, the signing of Yepes could prove to be a good addition to the ranks at the Emirates Stadium as he would bring a wealth of experience to the club.

Yepes being lined up by Arsenal

The fast paced nature of the Premier League means that it is not a competition where players in the twilight of their careers fare particularly well.

However, the daunting challenge of the English top flight does not seem to deter Yepes as he had also recently revealed that he wanted to challenge himself in the Premier League and the defender will surely not be able to reject the advances of an illustrious club such as Arsenal.

Yepes started his career at Cortuluá way back in 1994 and has enjoyed an illustrious career playing for the likes of Deportivo Cali, River Plate, Nantes, Paris Saint-Germain, Chievo, Milan and Atalanta. The defender has had a distinguished international career as well, having made over 100 appearances for the Colombian national team.