Arsenal have investigated the possibility of signing James Rodriguez on an initial loan deal, with intermediaries having made contact.

The Colombian star is currently on an extended loan at Bayern Munich, and set to return to parent club Real Madrid at the end of the season.

The European champions want to sell James on a permanent deal at that point, with that having attracted interest from Arsenal as well as Napoli.

All clubs have would favour an initial loan now, something it is believed that Bayern would not be averse to.

James himself is understood to want to fight it out for his place at Madrid at the end of the season, but that may prove futile if the Spanish side – as expected – sign Tottenham Hotspur's Christian Eriksen and Chelsea's Eden Hazard in the summer.

Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment Show all 9 1 /9 Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment We rank every Arsenal player signed since the arrival of Sven Mislintat from Borussia Dortmund. Getty Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment 8. Stephan Lichtsteiner 5/10. Signed on a free transfer from Juventus, although far too slow to be relied upon as a regular first-team option. AFP/Getty Images Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment 7. Konstantinos Mavropanos 6/10. The first signing made under Mislintat's tenure as head of recruitment. Was sent-off last season against Leicester, but still only 21 with plenty of potential. Arsenal FC via Getty Images Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment 6. Sokratis Papastathopoulos 6/10. A reliable option at the heart of Arsenal's defence, but £17.6m was an awful lot to spent on a 30-year-old. Getty Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment 5. Henrikh Mkhitaryan 6/10. Arrived at the Emirates as part of the deal taking Alexis Sanchez to Manchester United. Has impressed sporadically but is yet to look anywhere near his best. Getty Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment 4. Bernd Leno 7/10. Forced to wait for his chance, but now Unai Emery's established number one. Has made the occasional mistake but settling in well. Action Images via Reuters Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment 3. Matteo Guendouzi 8/10. Pound for pound, arguably Arsenal's best signing of the last two seasons. Already a regular aged just 19 and a snip at £7m. REUTERS Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment 2. Lucas Torreira 9/10. Exactly the sort of player Arsenal have been crying out for years now. Not just a first-team regular, but utterly essential to how Emery wants to play. Getty Ranking every Arsenal player signed since Sven Mislintat's appointment 1. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang 9/10. A fantastic signing, albeit for a hefty sum. Already has 24 goals in just 35 Premier League appearances and has developed a fine strike partnership with Alexandre Lacazette. Getty Images

Sources close to the Bernabeu hierarchy say they would prefer James going to Spurs to potentially smooth an Eriksen signing, with the Dane out of contract in 2020.

Arsenal are yet to make a signing this January transfer window with head coach Unai Emery having earlier admitted that funds were tight at the north London club.

The club therefore favour attempting to sign any targets on loan, with Barcelona’s Denis Suarez another target.