Arsenal relentless as Romano reveals Arteta still in hunt for classy Aston Villa star and Wolves winger
Douglas Luiz and Pedro Neto are Arsenal targets
Arsenal are still keeping tabs on Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz and he is not their only target from a club in the Midlands, Fabrizio Romano has revealed.
Luiz has long been admired by Arsenal, who made several bids for him towards the end of the 2022 summer transfer window. Since then, he has extended his contract with Aston Villa until 2026, but it appears his suitors are still in pursuit.
Writing for Caught Offside, Romano has now revealed that Arsenal have not lost sight of Luiz, while they are also keen on adding Pedro Neto from Wolves to their attack.
Romano said: “As I recently reported, Arsenal have been monitoring Pedro Neto for some time, and I can also say that Arsenal always keep monitoring the same players they like and Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz remains one of them. He’s always been appreciated.
“Of course, we know that Arsenal had bids rejected for Luiz in September 2022, and he later went on to sign a new contract at Villa Park, which runs until 2026.
“He’s now a key player for Villa so the deal would not be an easy one, but many clubs appreciate him.”
Douglas Luiz important to Aston Villa
Luiz has played in all 13 of Villa’s matches so far this season, scoring four goals along the way. He even led the side out as captain in one of his outings.
Villa have had the Brazil international among their ranks since 2019, when they purchased him from Manchester City after his time on loan at Girona.
Arsenal have been evolving their midfield in recent transfer windows. Since missing out on Luiz in 2022, they have signed Jorginho, Declan Rice and Kai Havertz, while letting go of Granit Xhaka and Albert Sambi Lokonga.
On the wing, where Neto is a target, there has been pressure on Mikel Arteta to find a rotation option to compete with the busy Bukayo Saka. Arsenal brought in Leandro Trossard from Brighton in January, but he plays on the opposite flank usually.
Neto is under contract at Molineux, for what it’s worth, until 2027, but TEAMtalk understands Arsenal have already been in contact ahead of a potential January swoop.
