With days running out to secure reinforcements in the January transfer window, a Premier League have had a £30 million bid rejected for Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz, according to Jason Burt of The Telegraph. The bid is reportedly not from Arsenal, however, despite their failure to land Juventus midfielder Arthur Melo on loan.
The bid seems to have woken Aston Villa up regarding contract talks. As per Percy, with Steven Gerrard a big fan of Luiz, contract talks are set to get underway with the midfielder.
Arsenal Have Bid Rejected for Douglas Luiz
Luiz a Key Part of Aston Villa Project
There is no doubting the importance of Douglas Luiz at Aston Villa. The Brazilian has started the last nine games, and has proven to be one of the first names on the team sheet. As Steven Gerrard looks to take his side past the mediocrity of mid-table, keeping the likes of Luiz remains crucial.
Meanwhile, Arsenal could do with a player of Luiz’s quality, themselves, which makes their lack of bid surprising. The Gunners have struggled to maintain the good form that initially got them a place in the top four. And, as the season continues to intensify, Mikel Arteta’s side may continue to struggle with little squad depth.
The primary objective – especially now Dusan Vlahovic looks set for a move to Juventus – seems to be securing another midfielder. Whether that’s because of Granit Xhaka’s consistent unreliability, or Thomas Partey’s injury record is anyone other than Arteta’s guess.
For now, though, the search continues, with a deal for Luiz incredibly unlikely as things stand. With that said, Arsenal – now likely forced to look elsewhere – must find the reinforcement they so desperately need once more. The Gunners have under a week to turn what has been a pretty dismal January window into a season-defining one with weaknesses solves, and the squad strengthened further.
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