While Saka must be a fan of his countryman, Unai Emery hinted Watkins will snub Arsenal and stay at Aston Villa after they beat Celtic 4-2 in the Champions League on Wednesday night. Declan Rice has also spent a number of years playing with the Arsenal target for England and against him as well.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta heaped praise on midfielder Ethan Nwaneri after the 17-year-old produced another fine performance to help his side secure a spot in the Champions League round of 16 with a victory at Girona.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta heaped praise on midfielder Ethan Nwaneri after the 17-year-old produced another fine performance to help his side secure a spot in the Champions League round of 16 with a victory at Girona.
Arsenal face a massive uphill battle to land Ollie Watkins and should late move fail their Premier League and Champions League title hopes will be in peril
Arsenal have made a bid for Ollie Watkins of Aston Villa, but that was rejected. Unai Emery’s side are not prepared to sell their star striker, especially after they’ve agreed to sell Jhon Duran to Al Nassr. Mikel Arteta’s side will try to sign Watkins again, but they do have a plan if they don’t manage to land a new striker before deadline day.
Arsenal solve one transfer issue as striker search steps up - Ethan Nwaneri has stepped up in Bukayo Saka’s absence
Arsenal transfer news as football.london writers debate Ollie Watkins' proposed move from Aston Villa to Arsenal
That proved to be the winner, and Nwaneri has been earning a lot of praise since. Diari de Girona branded the 17-year-old’s strike as a ‘great goal’, while Mundo Deportivo named him as Arsenal’s best player in both halves.
The biggest target elsewhere is Mathys Tel, who appeared to bid goodbye to Bayern Munich fans on teh pitch last night and is the subject of a bidding war involving Manchester United, Tottenham, Chelsea and, potentially Arsenal. Spurs have also been linked with Yoane Wissa, Noah Okafor, Tyler Dibling and Angel Gomes.
In the summer of 2024, Bukayo Saka credited Watkins for changing his life, reliving the moment that the striker scored to send England into the Euro 2024 final. “I was literally right behind it and I had the perfect angle of Ollie’s goal,” Saka told England’s media team.
Arsenal fans believe Ethan Nwaneri is better than Bukayo Saka was at 17 in wake of his display in the Champions League win over Girona.
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