Barcelona have secured the signing of Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia, who was a transfer target of Arsenal.

The Gunners are looking to sign a backup keeper as Bournemouth loanee Norberto Neto‘s loan deal expired at the end of the season. They now have just David Raya available.

Joan Garcia was heavily linked with a move to the Emirates, with many reports suggesting that the Gunners were the clear front-runners to land the Spaniard.

However, as reported by the Athletic, Barcelona have agreed a £21m deal to sign the keeper, and he may even become their first choice at the position, despite the fact that they have Marc-Andre Ter Stegen and Wojciech Szczesny available.

This means that the Gunners will have to look for other potential goalkeeper targets to fill the backup role behind Raya, unless they want to use an academy product, with the likes of Jack Porter and Tommy Setford coming through the ranks.

Who could Arsenal sign instead of Garcia?

Firstly, the Gunners could look to bring in a free agent in order to avoid having to spend on a transfer. The likes of Alex Meret from Napoli and Walter Benitez from PSV would both be solid options.

Meret especially, considering that he was the Italian side’s starting keeper this past season, making 35 appearances, conceding 25 goals and keeping 18 clean sheets.

Furthermore, in the Premier League, Nick Pope is likely to leave Newcastle this summer as the Magpies are set on bringing in Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford instead, according to iNews.

If not, Arsenal could also look at Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez, amid reports that the Blues are trying to sign AC Milan star Mike Maignan as his long-term replacement. They could bring Sanchez in, and he would be one of the best backup goalkeepers in the Premier League.

Click here to see the last 5 strikers that Arsenal signed, and where they are now.