One of Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal coaches has spoken out on the club’s transfer pursuit of Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior over the summer.
The Brazilian superstar was strongly linked with the Gunners by a number of reputable outlets, though in the end they missed out on his signature as he instead stayed and signed a new contract at the Bernabeu.
Arsenal assistant Miguel Molina spoke to Marca about a range of topics, and at one point he confirmed that Vinicius was part of the plan for the north London giants in the summer transfer window, even if he didn’t go into too much detail.
“Yes, of course. Obviously, I can’t stray from the facts, but he [Vinicius] was a name that was on the table, yes,” Molina said.
Arsenal and Vinicius – relief or regret?
Vinicius Junior in action for Real Madrid (Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images)
Arsenal fans will likely have mixed feelings about the Vinicius saga for a number of reasons.
First of all, it’s obviously exciting when your club is linked with such a big name – they don’t come much bigger than Vini Jr.
The 26-year-old is also precisely the kind of profile that Mikel Arteta’s side is currently lacking, with more pace, skill, and goal threat needed in that front three.
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At the same time, Vinicius hasn’t actually started this season particularly strongly, so some Gunners supporters may well feel their club dodged a bullet after not splashing vast sums of cash on this signing.
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Still, a lot of time and effort went into pursuing Vinicius when perhaps the club could have focused on more realistic targets, and in the end he was one of a number of ambitious names they missed out on, with Morgan Rogers and Julian Alvarez also slipping away from them in a difficult transfer window.
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