Report: Arsenal willing to bid for seven-assist star; Emery thinks he has ‘great quality’

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According to a report from Spanish outlet La Razon, Arsenal are willing to lodge a summer bid for Villarreal star Samuel Chukwueze.

The Gunners are set to battle fellow Premier League sides Everton and West Ham, while La LIga giants Atletico Madrid are also reportedly interested in the 21-year-old Nigerian’s services.

Chukwueze has had a fairly decent season for Villarreal this term. The youngster has scored four goals and has provided seven assists in all competitions – an impressive record for a player of his age.

Former Arsenal boss Unai Emery, who is now at the helm at Villarreal, is a huge fan of Chukwueze.

The Spaniard labelled the youngster as a player with ‘great quality’, but admitted that he needs to be more consistent in front of goal. (Villarreal official website)

As he plays more games, Chukwueze will certainly improve his finishing. 11 direct goal involvements is a tremendous record for any winger, let alone a 21-year-old. He will surely end up at a bigger club soon, but do Arsenal really need him?

The Insider’s View:

Arsenal have too many wingers at the moment. Mikel Arteta has Gabriel Martinelli, Willian, Nicolas Pepe, Bukayo Saka and Reiss Nelson at his disposal. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Emile Smith Rowe can also play out wide, which makes it seven first-team wingers.

Signing Chukwueze would make no sense whatsoever. He’s a brilliant little player, but he’s not on the level of someone like Martinelli or Saka. That means he will not be the first-choice even if he joins us, which makes the whole move unnecessary.

However, the Nigerian is expected to start against Arsenal in the Europa League semi-final next week. If he manages to impresses Arteta, a move this summer could well be on the cards, even though we’ll have to sell multiple players to accommodate him.