Aston Villa boss Unai Emery and Premier League leaders Arsenal are both long-time admirers of the £10 million-rated Greece U21 international Giannis Konstantelias amid reports of a potential move to England, according to Sportdog.
Ironically enough, Emery now faces competition from his old employers for a player he was hoping to bring to the Emirates Stadium four years ago.
The former PSG, Sevilla and Valencia coach, Sportdog say, was ‘excited’ about the Konstantelias’ potential arrival in North London back in 2019. Arsenal were reportedly ‘very close’ to completing a £1.5 million deal for the PAOK wonderkid at the time.
These days, the Gunners would have to pay a fee nearly 10 times higher for a 19-year-old winger who, with his searing pace and dazzling footwork, has the feeling of a ‘Mykhaylo Mudryk alternative’ for an Arsenal side who lost their number one target to Chelsea over the weekend.
Arsenal face battle with Unai Emery’s Aston Villa for Giannis Konstantelias
“He goes past opponents two at a time. A great talent. I wonder why he didn’t play earlier,” PAOK Iegend Kostas Frantzeskos says in quotes reported by Regista. “I believe that he will soon leave Greece.
“He will be signed by a big European team, because he is a talent. He can do great things on the pitch. I hope Konstantelias has a great career, because he can with the quality he has.”
Arsenal are likely to face competition from their former boss as they look to belatedly secure the services of a long-term target; Emery’s admiration for the now-19-year-old forward very much ongoing. Sportdog say that Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City is another potential destination.
The London Evening Standard, meanwhile, throw Crystal Palace, Leeds United, Wolves and a PSV side who sold Cody Gakpo to Liverpool earlier in the window into the mix.
Like Gakpo, Konstantelias is a direct, dynamic and two-footed attacker who likes to cut in from the left-hand side. He has four assists in 15 games for PAOK this season.
Chelsea beat Arsenal to Ukraine international Mykhaylo Mudryk
£10 million, of course, is a lot of money to spend on a relatively unproven 19-year-old. But Arsenal were willing to pay far, far more for another up-and-coming talent plying his trade in Eastern Europe.
“I met Arsenal more times than Chelsea,” Shakhtar Donetsk CEO Sergei Palkin tells The Athletic; explaining why Mudryk ended up at Stamford Bridge rather than the Emirates.
“Arsenal contacted the player almost one and a half months before they contacted us. Why did many people have the impression that Mudryk was going to Arsenal? It is because Arsenal contacted him, and then Mudryk started to watch some Arsenal games.
“But negotiations are negotiations. When you didn’t close everything, then you cannot finish the deal. Therefore, it was just an outside visual impression that Mudryk (was) close to Arsenal.”
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