Arsenal & AC Milan chase France international

Arsenal have been joined by AC Milan in the race to sign France international defender Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, according to talkSPORT.

The Montpellier skipper is out of contract at the end of the season, and will be available on a free transfer if he does not sign a extension.

The 23-year-old can play across the backline, and Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is thought to be a huge fan of the youngster.

But the Gunners face competition from Serie 'A' giants AC Milan, who have entered the chase to sign the Frenchman.

The France international has three caps for his country, and would be one of the most wanted free agents next summer should he fail to agree a new contract with the French champions.

TalkSPORT claim Montpellier could choose to sell their skipper in January, rather than risk losing him on a free transfer six months later - and Arsenal and Milan would both be likely to bid, according to the report.

Milan had been thought to be pursuing Yanga-Mbiwa's Ligue 1 compatriot Nicolas N'Koulou of Marseille, but sources in Italy suggest the Serie 'A' side have now switched targets and will instead focus their attention on Yanga-Mbiwa.

The 6ft 1in defender was born in the Central African Republic, but moved to France as a youngster, and made eight appearances for the under-21 national side before making the step up to the France team for their Euro 2012 preliminary squad. But Yanga-Mbiwa did not make Laurent Blanc's final squad for the tournament.