Arsenal have been handed a major blow in their mission to sign Douglas Luiz amid Mikel Arteta's mission bolster his midfield options. The 24-year-old, who sees his deal at Villa Park expire at the end of the season, was heavily linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium in the summer but a deal failed to materialise.
football.london understand that the Gunners had been monitoring Luiz for some time before eventually tabling a bid in the summer thought to be in the region of £25million. Arteta's side submitted three bids for the Aston Villa star after learning that Mohamed Elneny and Thomas Partey would be absent due to injury.
But Steven Gerrard's side stood strong, with the club unwilling to lose a first-team player so late into the transfer window. Now, Arsenal face increasing competition from Premier League rivals for Luiz's signature.
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According to the BirminghamLive, Chelsea are the latest side to have registered interest in the Brazil international. With Luiz's deal coming to an end, it will be difficult for Villa to warrant as big an asking price with clubs eligible to begin pre-contract talks in January.
The west Londoners' interest in the midfielder comes as Jorginho and N'Golo Kante face increasingly uncertain futures at Stamford Bridge. Like Luiz, the duo each see their deals expire next summer, with Mateo Kovacic, Mason Mount and Ruben Loftus-Cheek all currently able to leave via a free transfer in the summer of 2024.
With Graham Potter set to potentially scupper Arteta's midfield plan in January, Steven Gerrard explained the club's decision to deny Luiz a deadline day move to Arsenal. The former Liverpool midfielder said: "I’ve got confidence that he’ll understand the situation and the club’s decision.
"We didn’t want to lose a very important player and a top player so late in the window," Gerrard added. "From a personal point of view I very much back the club’s stance on that I spoke to him face-to-face yesterday and he understood where we were at and the position the club was in. He very much respects the decision so hopefully it will calm down in the hours and days to follow and he’ll be fine moving forward."
Had Luiz penned a deal at Arsenal, he would have been the Gunners' sixth signing of the summer - and third Brazilian. With the Villa star fitting the profile of player Arteta wants, he'd likely have seamlessly slotted into the north Londoners' starting XI
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