‘Nothing we can do’: Club chief suggests he may be powerless to resist if Arsenal bid for his £35m player
Celta Vigo president Carlos Mouriño has admitted that he may be powerless to resist if a bid arrives for Gabri Veiga, after he’s been linked with a move to Arsenal.
Veiga is enjoying an exceptional campaign in Spain as he’s netted nine goals and provided three assists in 25 La Liga appearances.
The 20-year-old has clearly caught Arsenal’s attention as Mikel Arteta’s men have been linked with a move for him in recent weeks.
Indeed, Spanish journalist Manu Sainz told AS Diario that Veiga ‘dreams’ of joining the Gunners.
Of course, Arsenal are well-stocked in terms of attacking midfielders with the likes of Martin Odegaard starring this season and Fabio Vieira joining last summer.
But if they decide to strengthen the position further this summer by bringing in Veiga, Celta’s club chief has admitted that he may be unable to stop the move.
Club chief admits he may be powerless to resists bids for Veiga
Speaking to Spanish outlet La Voz de Galicia, Mouriño provided an update on Veiga’s future at Celta Vigo amid interest from the Premier League.
“Under no circumstances do we want to sell him, but I can also tell you that they are going to buy him from us and there is nothing we can do about it,” he said.
The outlet notes Mouriño added that four of England’s top 10 clubs have already asked about signing the Spaniard.
The Celta chief also admitted that it would be impossible for his side to match the wage package that English clubs can offer Veiga.
“We know some of the offers he has had,” he said. “As much as we would like to, we wouldn’t be able to pay him what other teams are paying him.
“We don’t want to raise false expectations,” he said. “I know you get this, we give you less than half, why don’t you come with me?”
He added: “We would be fooling ourselves if we said we saw any chance of him staying, we don’t. But we have to be very proud of the fact that we have a lot of pride in the club.
“But we have to be very proud of our youth players, that they have that value in the market, like Brais Méndez, Santi Mina, Borja Iglesias.”
Veiga could be available at a bargain price in the summer as his contract includes a £35 million release clause.
The attacking-midfielder is receiving interest from the likes of Liverpool and Newcastle United though, which may make things slightly more difficult for Arsenal.
At just 20, the youngster clearly has a bright future ahead of him but it remains to be seen whether the Gunners will target another number 10.
It’s hard to see Veiga being able to compete with Odegaard for a space in the side, something Vieira has found difficult since his switch from Porto.
Arsenal are in need of direct competition for Thomas Partey though and that seems the most likely area of the midfield they will look to strengthen this summer.
