Real Madrid winger Isco. (Photo : Reuters)
Arsenal target Isco is now reportedly not for sale as Real Madrid would need the Spanish winger to fill-in for the injured James Rodriguez moving forward into the season.
Caught Offside noted that the Gunners have been "strongly linked" to Isco in the past couple of transfer windows and are said to be finally set to acquire the 23-year-old attacking midfielder from Los Blancos this January as Arsene Wenger looks to upgrade his options in scoring and the midfield.
However, Colombian star Rodriguez suffered a torn left thigh muscle with a minor knee injury during the national team's 1-1 exhibition game against Peru on September 8, causing him to be sidelined for four weeks now and counting.
SB Nation reported that the 24-year-old winger will be out for three more weeks as the injury has not yet completely healed as expected. With that, Rodriguez will miss games for Real in La Liga, including the Madrid derby on Sunday, and Colombia in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers this month.
Madrid chief Rafa Benitez said that the "new problem is not serious" but club and country are just taking precautions to ensure that Rodriguez will be one percent to compete come November.
Meanwhile, Isco is expected to pick up the void left by the Colombia international's setback and so it looks like the Spaniard will no longer be up for sale as Benitez wants him as an insurance whenever these kinds of injuries happen.
Recent reports also said that even if Rodriguez will be back in harness for Los Merengues, Isco will continue to be a regular fixture in Benitez's starting unit.
