“Put off”: Journalist claims Arsenal no longer want to sign 23-year-old Aston Villa target

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Arsenal have now been “put off” from signing Joao Felix in 2023 – a player who is said to be a target for Aston Villa.

What’s the story?

Well, it was journalist Paul Brown who told Give Me Sport that Arsenal are huge admirers of the Portugal international, and have monitored him for ages.

Elsewhere, it was MARCA in Spain who revealed that Aston Villa want to sign Felix.

Now, Unai Emery may have a free run at signing the Atlético Madrid forward, as the Gunners – who sacked the Spaniard in 2019 – no longer seem interested. Not for the quoted price, anyway.

According to Ben Jacobs of CBS Sports, Mikel Arteta and Edu have been “put off” by Atlético Madrid’s asking price, which is believed to be in the region of £88m – as detailed by Fabrizio Romano.

Atlético Madrid paid a staggering £113m to sign the 23-year-old from Benfica back in July 2019, during a period where he was being mentioned in the same breath as Kylian Mbappe after bursting onto the scene.

However, Felix has struggled under Diego Simeone at the Wanda Metropolitano, and Gil Martin – CEO of the Spanish giants – has already confirmed that the Portuguese sensation is up for sale.

Fabrizio Romano quotes the 59-year-old as saying: “Joao Felix is top level but because of his relationship with Simeone and game time, we feel that it makes sense to consider potential bids to sell him.”

Arsenal must not give up on Aston Villa target Joao Felix

Admittedly, we agree with Arsenal that £88m is a bit expensive.

However, opportunities to sign potential superstars such as Felix do not come around very often, so we believe Edu should do all he can to work around the fee, whether that is by offering some players in exchange, or a prolonged run of instalments like how the Nicolas Pepe deal was structured.

Simeone – a defensive minded tactician – seemed like the wrong fit for Felix from the start, but under Arteta, a manager proven to be talented at working with youngsters, his vast potential could be fulfilled.

Furthermore, Arsenal could do with another forward after Gabriel Jesus underwent surgery, and it remains to be seen if Eddie Nketiah can step up to the plate.

Hopefully, the Gunners have not given up on Felix entirely.