The dust has settled on Arsenal’s failed pursuit of Jeremy Monga.
Manchester City gazumped Arsenal for the teenage winger, agreeing a deal worth £12.5million plus a sell-on-fee with Leicester City.
That is almost double what Arsenal had deemed a fair valuation.
New Man City manager Enzo Maresca was the driving force, having worked with Monga during his time as Leicester head coach in 2023-24.
Arsenal, who had been front-runners for months, ultimately withdrew their interest, put off by the finances involved.
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Whether that was a smart decision or costly dithering remains up for debate.
What is clear now is how City actually intend to use the player this season.
How Manchester City will use Jeremy Monga revealed
According to The Athletic, Man City don’t quite view Monga as first-team ready yet.
Despite the £12.5million price tag, the expectation is that he will develop within the academy structure.
He may feature in domestic cup minutes if the opportunity arises, but regular first-team involvement would be surprising.
With Rayan Cherki, Jeremy Doku, Antoine Semenyo, Phil Foden, and Savinho, City have plenty of options heading into the new season, and Monga would only really benefit in the event of an injury crisis.
Maresca clearly believes in the player’s long-term potential, enough to push hard for a deal that Arsenal walked away from.
But the plan in the short term is to be patient with the player.
Were Arsenal actually right to walk away from Jeremy Monga deal?
Fans are split on whether Andrea Berta was right to walk away.
On one hand, City paying £12.5million for such a young player they don’t even expect to feature regularly suggests Arsenal were right to question the valuation.
On the other, an extremely talented player who badly wanted to join Arsenal is now at their main title rivals.
City will develop him and, at the very least, sell him for a profit, denying the Gunners the opportunity to do the same.
Some might suggest that Arsenal don’t especially need Monga, having already agreed to bring in the highly-rated Quintero twins from Ecuador as well as Victor Ozhianvuna from Ireland.
Not to mention Max Dowman, who is poised to play a bigger role under Mikel Arteta next season.
Monga turns 17 this week. In four or five years, this transfer decision may look very different depending on how his career unfolds.
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