He is a great player,I don’t know why a player In his right senses will have to snub Man city offer for Arsenal, Although I will still speak with Him again’: Ruben Diaz confirmed His £50m fellow Countryman have agreed terms to join Arsenal in January
Arsenal are reportedly ready to make their presence known in the upcoming January transfer window, with the Gunners already linked to a host of star talent in the bid to bolster the squad at the Emirates.
Mikel Arteta and Edu enjoyed a successful summer of business, spending over £200m on new signings, however there appears to be a lot of work left to do to strengthen the depth of the team in preparation for the remainder of the 2023/24 campaign.
Injuries have once again left the north Londoners short of options in their quest to field their best XI week in week out, with the cracks from last season’s shortcomings in the title race already beginning to show.
That being said, the January window now provides Arteta with the chance to welcome additional reinforcements to his squad to avoid such patterns repeating themselves.
Arsenal transfer targets – forwards
A report from The Mirror claimed that the midfield is where the manager will hope to rejuvenate in January, although it’s not the only area that is said to be targeted at the Emirates.
Recently, a report from SunSport speculated that Arsenal are ahead of Real Madrid in their rumoured pursuit of Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic, who has a CIES Football Observatory market value of €80m (£70m).
There is no doubt that the 23-year-old would bring a goal scoring presence to the Gunners’ attack, however the Serbian is not the only player linked that could bolster the front line.
A report from TEAMtalk has now suggested that Arteta’s side are one of the teams in the running for Wolves winger Pedro Neto, who is also said to be admired by Manchester United and clubs in Saudi Arabia.
It’s reported that the north Londoners would have to pay a fee in the region of £60m to those at Molineux, a fair price considering the form that the Portuguese forward has showcased so far in 2023/24.
TEAMtalk added that Arteta is keen to welcome another winger to the fold to add to the depth of the squad, with Neto’s proven ability to play in the Premier League making him an exciting prospect to follow.
Pedro Neto’s career in numbers
In 2019, the dynamic wide player arrived at Molineux from Lazio as a hopeful starlet, but unfortunately his time in Wolverhampton has been far from easy.
Every season since his arrival, Neto has missed game time due to injury, with two long-term blows seeing him miss over a year of his career between 2020/21 and 2022/23.
The Portugal international’s misfortune began in April 2021 when he sustained a serious injury to his knee cap, resulting in him missing the remainder of the 2020/21 campaign, and seven months of the 2021/22 calendar.
It was only eight months after his return that the 23-year-old was forced to sit on the sidelines once more, picking up an ankle injury in October 2022 that saw him miss not only 127 days of action, but agonisingly the 2022 World Cup as well.
As highlighted in the table above, it was difficult for the young forward to properly get going at Wolves due to injury and squad competition, however this season has seen the former Lazio starlet break out of the chains that restricted his form prior.
In only ten games played, Neto has recorded his best assists tally throughout his career at Molineux, topping the Premier League charts as the best creator with seven assists, despite missing the previous three fixtures to a hamstring injury.
Lauded as “incredible” earlier in the campaign by manager Gary O’Neil, the winger has caused havoc this term to defenders in the league because of his ruthless streak when in possession, with his return from injury eagerly awaited in the Midlands.
