Gerrard shares how Douglas Luiz reacted after Villa blocked Arsenal move

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Steven Gerrard has now revealed how Douglas Luiz reacted after Aston Villa blocked his move to Arsenal on transfer deadline day.

Following injuries to Mo Elneny and Thomas Partey, Arsenal were desperate for a new midfielder. Luiz became our primary target, and we tabled three bids to try and sign him last night. Villa, sadly, rejected every one of those offers, and the Brazilian was forced to stay (Sky Sports).

Gerrard shares how Douglas Luiz reacted after Villa blocked his move to Arsenal

Aston Villa have had a shocking start to the season and are currently 19th in the league table. If things don’t improve very soon, they could end up in a relegation fight, which is something no player wants to be a part of.

To add to that, Luiz has already entered the final year of his contract. He wanted to leave Villa and join Arsenal yesterday, but his club made it absolutely clear that they weren’t going to sell him.

Steven Gerrard faced the media today ahead of their game this weekend, and he was asked about Luiz’s reaction after his move to Arsenal was blocked on deadline day.

The Villa boss said, as quoted by The Metro: “I’ve got confidence that he’ll understand the situation and the club’s decision. We didn’t want to lose a very important player and a top player so late in the window.

“From a personal point of view, I very much back the club’s stance on that.

“I spoke to him face-to-face yesterday and he understood where we were at and the position the club was in. He very much respects the decision so hopefully it will calm down in the hours and days to follow and he’ll be fine moving forward.”

The Insider’s View:

Arsenal were forced into the market last night due to our injury problems, and Luiz was the man Arteta and Edu decided to try and bring in.

A move to the Emirates would’ve been fantastic for the Brazilian. He was once at Manchester City but didn’t make it there, and he would surely love another chance at a big club to prove his worth.

If Villa had allowed him to leave yesterday, he would’ve got that opportunity at the Emirates, but that’s gone now. We would be really surprised if Arsenal go back in for him in January or next summer, even though he’ll be a free agent then.

As good as Luiz is, there will be better players available for Arsenal to target in the next two windows. We’re sure Edu will focus on someone a lot more accomplished than the Aston Villa man, especially if we return to the Champions League next season.