Denis Suarez agreed to join Arsenal on loan

Eniola Olayemi

Arsenal has signed Barcelona midfielder Denis Suarez on loan until the end of the season.

The La Liga champions have extended the 25-year-old’s contract until June 2021, although the Gunners have a purchase option in the summer.

Spaniard Suarez has played 71 times for Barcelona since joining in 2013 but has only featured eight times this season.

He previously played under Gunners manager Unai Emery at Sevilla, when he was at the club on loan.

Suarez spent two seasons at Manchester City as a teenager but only made two first-team appearances before being sold to Barcelona as a 19-year-old.

The Gunners remain in negotiations to sign a wide player – Inter Milan’s Croatia internationalDalian Yifang  is among the options being pursued, with Belgium winger Yannick Carrasco of Chinese club Dalian Yifang also linked.

Despite a number of injuries, Arsenal is not likely to bolster their defence.

Captain Laurent Koscielny could be in contention to return in time for Sunday’s trip to Manchester City, while Sokratis Papastathopoulos – who like Koscielny was forced off during the FA Cup defeat by Manchester United on Friday – is not expected to be out for long.