Arsenal great Charlie Nicholas is of the belief that Raphael Varane will help fix their apparent defensive frailties.

The former Gunners and Celtic forward has identified the defence as Arsene Wenger's weakest area and is imploring the Frenchman to go after his compatriot Varane who looks likely to leave Real Madrid in the summer.

"Arsene has brought Gabriel [Paulista] in and maybe he's thinking 'I've got a replacement for Mertesacker here'. But there's certainly a case for bringing in a big name at centre-half this summer," he told Sky Sports.

"Ideally, if the situation arose, I'd like to go and get Raphael Varane from Real Madrid, that's who I'd really love Arsenal to get."

However, Nicholas is aware that Varane may be a tricky target to tie down and says there must be a contingency plan.

"There's lots of good defenders out there that you can go and pursue," he added.

"I hear they've been linked with Chris Smalling, but I'm not convinced he's had enough time to fully learn his trade yet.

"There are other British choices, but the problem is they simply cost too much. Everybody's demands are too ridiculous and I always get deeply concerned by some of the domestic asking prices."