If Mikel Arteta thought playing a Premier League match the night before deadline day would end up being a stumbling block in his transfer plans, then the Arsenal boss would've been delighted to come away from the Gunners' battling 2-1 victory over Aston Villa with a big silver lining.
After receiving "not good news" regarding Mohamed Elneny's hamstring injury, which is expected to keep the Egyptian out "for a while," Arteta has found himself with a shortage of central midfielders and in dire need of reinforcements. First-choice No.6 Thomas Partey is already sidelined with a thigh issue, midfield alternative Oleksandr Zinchenko has also missed Arsenal's last two games thanks to a knock and newly-appointed captain Martin Odegaard is now suddenly a doubt for Sunday's trip to Manchester United.
But as the young Albert Sambi Lokonga partnered elder statesman Granit Xhaka during Wednesday's win at the Emirates, the Gunners came across a man who should be on their radar with less than 24 hours of the summer transfer window to go - and someone they stand a chance of signing.
Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz - who was linked with a move to Arsenal back in January - was brought on as a second-half substitute by visiting manager Steven Gerrard, and the Brazilian wasted no time in making an impact. With just his second touch, Luiz scored directly from a corner - remarkably the second time he's done so this season - to cancel out Gabriel Jesus' opener and make it 1-1.
Gabriel Martinelli thankfully came to the rescue only three minutes later to ensure the three points stayed in north London, as talk after the final whistle quickly turned to both Arsenal and Villa's respective transfer business. Firstly, Arteta was forced to admit that his transfer plans have 'changed' as a result of Elneny's injury and subsequently revealed that the Gunners were open to doing late deals, so long as it was "the right opportunity."
Shortly after his post-match press conference, Gerrard gave them a major boost when discussing Luiz's future. Asked if he could guarantee that the 24-year-old - whose contract in the midlands is due to expire next June - would still be a Villa player beyond Thursday's 11pm deadline, Gerrard admitted: "I'm not in control of that. That will be Douglas, his agent and what happens around that.
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"I'd like to keep him, he's a fantastic player. I've made that abundantly clear. We're not in a position where we need to lose our top players but at the same time Douglas has got a year to go and it is one of those really touchy situations where the club has to do what is best for the club, even if it is not necessarily best for me."
An established Brazil international, Luiz has played 107 games for the Villa Park club since signing from Manchester City for £15million three years ago. The former Vasco da Gama prodigy never made a first-team appearance for the Citizens after joining them in 2017, being sent out on loan to Girona for both of his two seasons under contract in the north west.
Arteta, of course, was a coach at the Etihad during Luiz's time there and along with City boss Pep Guardiola got to know all about the now Arsenal target's talents in training. "He's an important player for Aston Villa," Guardiola later explained in 2020. "A guy who's clever with the ball, he's so physical and strong."
Chelsea and Liverpool are also believed to be interested in Luiz, with Gerrard's fresh admission and the potential of signing him for a cut-price fee no-doubt pricking their ears up, too. Looking to remedy their ongoing issues in midfield, the Gunners will need to act fast if they're hand Arteta his sixth summer signing - and Luiz seems to be exactly the "right opportunity" which they can't ignore.