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Arsenal are going through a difficult transfer window, and William Saliba’s back injury has only made their business more complicated.

Arsenal have suffered another setback in a transfer window that is turning into a long and frustrating grind.

So far, the Gunners have only brought in backup goalkeeper Ilian Meslier and taken a chance on Greek forward Christos Tzolis, while targets such as Morgan Rogers have slipped away and the Bruno Guimaraes pursuit has also been a demanding saga.

With Arsenal possibly heading into the new season amid an injury crisis as well, more news that they will not land a preferred defensive target is almost certain to worry supporters.

When William Saliba was forced out of the World Cup semi-final against eventual champions Spain with a worrying back injury, Arsenal’s summer transfer plans were thrown into doubt, and manager Mikel Arteta was expected to bring in a backup for the hugely important French defender.

Arsenal have since confirmed in a statement that Saliba will not be undergoing surgery, contrary to the first reports, but the absence of a like-for-like replacement to line up beside Gabriel still leaves a major weakness in a defence that was outstanding on the way to a first Premier League title in 22 years.

Friday’s edition of Mundo Deportivo in Spain, relayed through Sport Witness, says the uncertainty around Saliba has led Arsenal to ask about Real Sociedad youngster Jon Martin.

Described as a “Basque lighthouse” who “deserves to be in the same breath” as leading Spanish centre-backs Pau Cubarsi and Dean Huijsen by youth football expert Joe Donnohue in FourFourTwo’s Boy's A Bit Special series, Martin has been on Arsenal’s radar for a long time.

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Sport Witness notes that both Arsenal and Real Madrid can activate the €60 million release clause needed to secure the defender, but the 20-year-old is reportedly keen to stay in San Sebastian for the foreseeable future.

This follows a similar path to Arsenal’s Martin Zubimendi, who turned down interest from clubs such as Liverpool and Manchester City so that he could stay at La Real for as long as possible — before eventually moving to the Emirates Stadium last summer.

FourFourTwo understands that although Martin is a serious target for the North London club, a fee of more than £50m may still be too expensive for a player who is basically seen as a project signing and is unlikely to displace Saliba from the first-team picture.

The Gunners continue to hold strong interest in England defender Ezri Konsa, helped in part by the Aston Villa man’s ability to play at right-back, while free agent John Stones has also been mentioned as a possible short-term signing.

Ben White’s expected exit from N5 may now be delayed because of Saliba’s recovery, with FourFourTwo understanding that Newcastle United star Tino Livramento is another serious option to effectively take White’s right-back place in the squad and let his Three Lions team-mate cover in the centre of defence.

According to Transfermarkt, Martin is valued at €25m. Arsenal begin their Premier League title defence against Frank Lampard’s newly-promoted Coventry City.