JUST IN: £30M star player just arrived with His agent to negotiate deal with Arsenal AHEAD of Summer move – player loves Arteta’s project more than his current club
Mikel Arteta isn’t short of strikers with Gabriel Jesus and Edie Nketiah at his disposal, but he might want a more prolific option if Arsenal are challenge on four fronts next season. Jus Fav of Juenes Footeux says the Gunners are ‘closely following’ Montpellier HSC’s Elye Wahi and may have to pay €30m (£26.3m) for his signature.
The 20-year-old joined Montpellier from Montfermeil in 2018 and has gone on to make 82 appearances in all competitions, scoring 25 goals with five assists. Wahi scored 10 goals in 33 Ligue 1 games last season and has 12 goals from 24 Ligue 1 games this campaign, so he has a bright future. And given Wahi’s bagged more goals than Jesus (5) and Nketiah (4), it’s clear he would improve Arsenal’s frontline.
Juenes Footeux note that the North Londoners would have to battle Tottenham Hotspur and Borussia Dortmund for the 20-year-old, so a bidding war may commence over the summer.
Jesus has scored five goals and made six assists from 16 league outings since joining from Manchester City in 2022, so his place in the side isn’t up for grabs. But Nketiah could do with competition as he’s without a goal for two months while being injured for two weeks.
Wahi would give Arteta another option in attack and would add motivation for Arsenal’s existing forwards to work hard for their place. The France U21 international would surely jump at the chance to leave a side sitting 11th in Ligue 1 too, so there are few obstacles standing in their way.
Arsenal are likely to have many names on their transfer wishlist, however, so they won’t rush into making a decision until the season comes to a close. The Gunners might want more prolific options than Wahi too, so that might hold them back from making their interest official. Time will tell.
Arsenal could win the Premier League title this campaign, sealing their place in the Champions League next season, so they will want the best available striker to improve the side. Wahi, while impressive, isn’t guaranteed to hit the ground running in another country and he’s inexperienced at the top level.
That being said, paying £26.3m isn’t much of a gamble for a side that spent €192m (£169.2m) in 2022/23.
