Arsenal have missed out on major target, following telling purchase: report
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta looks to have missed out on this occasion
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Arsenal may have crucially missed out on one of their summer transfer targets.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta’s seeming priority remains to be in attack, with Viktor Gyokeres and Benjamin Sesko both rumoured to be of interest to those at the Emirates Stadium this summer.
But it isn’t their shortlist for a new forward that has taken a damaging blow, more a defensive addition that could have helped Arteta with vital squad rotation, given the injury problems he and his team faced last term.
Why Arsenal may have ‘missed out’ on a new star this summer
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta wants competition for places at the Emirates Stadium (Image credit: Alamy)It is no secret the vision Arteta so desperately wants to see through in north London, with Arsenal coming up short time and time again in the last few years. The Gunners went ever so close in the Champions League by beating Real Madrid, but couldn’t topple eventual winners PSG in the semi-finals.
It was the same story in the Premier League too, with runaway winners Liverpool beating Arteta and his men to the title, after injuries curtailed their season around the New Year period.
Bukayo Saka’s injury was a problem for Mikel Arteta last season (Image credit: Getty Images)With summer talks ongoing, a player Arsenal have been rumoured to be interested in is Ajax man Jorrel Hato. The 19-year-old has risen through the ranks at the Johan Cruyff Arena and is currently representing the Netherlands at the Under-21 European Championships in Slovakia.
The Gunners have reportedly been sniffing around the teenager, as relayed by Football Transfers, but further claims from the Netherlands state he has now made an extravagant purchase that puts any move to Arsenal under fire.
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SoccerNews in Holland says Hato recently bought a new home in Amsterdam, paying ‘around âŹ1.65million (ÂŁ1.4million) for the apartment on the Zuidas in the capital’. It is unknown whether his new home relates to a potential stay in his home country, which may come as bad news to Arsenal.
âThe smartest thing is to look at it [in] pre-season, thatâs what I do,â he told Ajaxâs website earlier this year, when asked if he feels at home in Amsterdam. âOf course you want to achieve things in the end: the Champions League, a World Cup and a European Championship, I still have plenty of time. I donât think I absolutely have to win the Champions League in two years.”
Jorrel Hato is making a name for himself across Europe already (Image credit: Getty Images)In FourFourTwo’s view, Arsenal may have to sit tight and wait for the right time to pounce when it comes to acquiring the talented Netherlands international.
Valued by Transfermarkt at âŹ35m (ÂŁ29.8m), his stock could rise once again if he continues to perform well with the Netherlands in Slovakia this summer. Next up for them is a crucial clash with holders England.
Matthew Holt writes freelance for FourFourTwo, amongst others, and boasts previous experience at GOAL and SPORTBible. He now works with us alongside his time at Manchester United and Reach PLC, aiding with online content for the website. Career highs include working at the FA Cup final, as well as scoring at Old Trafford in front of the Stretford End. A long-term sufferer of his beloved Scunthorpe United, he is often seen on the padel court, as well as occasionally as a six-a-side call-up.
