According to respected journalist Fabrizio Romano, Arsenal dream of signing Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz to strengthen their midfield department in January.
The London giants have had another good start to the Premier League campaign but they have been hampered by more injuries compared to last season. In midfield, Arsenal are currently without the services of Thomas Partey with a thigh injury and he may not be available until January at least.
The club face another problem in early 2024 with Partey and Mohamed Elneny set to be involved with Ghana and Egypt at the African Cup of Nations. This would leave them short when it comes to midfield options. Jorginho and Declan Rice could be the only specialist defensive midfielders at that point.
Speaking in his YouTube channel, Romano has revealed that Luiz is Arsenal’s top target for January and they are not looking into a deal for Ruben Neves. While the Gunners dream of signing him, Romano insists that it is not an easy negotiation with Villa, who are right in the hunt for the top 4.
He said: “The top target is Douglas Luiz from Aston Villa. There is nothing with Ruben Neves despite rumours. But for Douglas Luiz, from my understanding, it’s not an easy deal. Arsenal will try, Arsenal dream of him, but it’s not something concrete. So let’s see what’s going to happen because it’s not an easy negotiation with Aston Villa at all.”
Difficult deal
Arsenal were interested in signing the Brazilian star back in the summer of 2022 following an injury for Partey. They made a maximum bid of £25 million for the midfielder but it was not sufficient to persuade Villa to sell him before the transfer deadline. Luiz went on to sign a new long-term contract and he is currently one of the first names on the team sheet under manager Unai Emery.
Villa are presently just 1 point behind the top 4 and there is only a 3-point gap to leaders Manchester City. The Midlands outfit have high ambitions for the campaign and may not want to lose one of their prized assets at the midway stage of the campaign. Hence, a deal could be difficult to pull off for Arsenal during the winter transfer window.
Arsenal may have to look at alternative choices to the 25-year-old. Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi has been another long-term target for the club, but Sociedad may not sell him unless his £52 million release clause is activated. The midfielder was a target for the Gunners last summer, but he wanted to play Champions League football with the La Liga outfit.
