Former England defender Rio Ferdinand has questioned why Arsenal would be interested in signing Real Madrid striker Luka Jovic, insisting that they need a centre-back more than a new attacking player.

The Gunners are one of the Premier League clubs to have been linked with a move for the 22-year-old, who has scored just two goals for Los Blancos since his £54m summer switch to the Spanish capital.

Jovic has been touted as a possible replacement for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who is approaching the final year of his contract, but Ferdinand believes that they should be targeting other areas of their team as a priority.

"He is someone who could add something to Arsenal but I don't think Arsenal need a player in that position," Ferdinand said during an Instagram Q&A.

"Arsenal need centre-halves. They need centre-halves who can defend and play as well. I played against Arsenal teams with the likes of Sol Campbell and Tony Adams. I don't see that now. They have many good footballers but you need a blend.

"Why are they going for Jovic when they need to be looking at centre-halves? Arsenal is a fantastic club, what a club. But they need to get it right in other areas of the pitch."

Arsenal's current centre-back options include David Luiz, Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Shkodran Mustafi, Rob Holding, Calum Chambers and Pablo Mari.