Steven Gerrard has confessed he expects interest in Aston Villa star Douglas Luiz to continue throughout the season.
The Brazilian is into the final year of his contract and will be free to leave Villa Park next summer if he and the club cannot agree on an extension. Arsenal are among those credited with interest having been keen on the midfielder during the summer transfer window.
Gerrard's side were able to ward off approaches while the market was open and retain their player, who made 35 appearances last term. That has not quashed talk of a move away for Luiz, but his manager insists there have been no issues with his attitude or application amid the ongoing speculation.
While Villa have made no strides in terms of extending the player's deal, Gerrard has expressed no issues. Discussing Luiz, he said: “No news in terms of him extending his stay here, so that situation hasn’t changed. But what I would say is he is very focused, he has trained well.
“Am I surprised by the speculation? No, because we have got a young Brazilian player who is a fantastic talent. I expect to be asked this question a lot as the season progresses. We want him to stay here. I think the owners were very strong in keeping him here. We didn’t want to lose him on the final day and he’s performed very well since.”
Arsenal had been willing to pay over £20million for Luiz several weeks ago and are reportedly expected to return with a fresh bid in January, albeit one that is considerably less than their summer offer. Mikel Arteta has concerns over the durability of Thomas Partey, who is continually plagued by injures.
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It could force the Arsenal boss into the market for more reinforcements, especially if the Gunners do continue to set the pace and remain in contention for the Premier League title come the New Year. Arsenal view a bid of £15m more than acceptable for Luiz, who was signed from Manchester City in 2019 for £12.5m and will only have six months left on his deal by January.
Gerrard said of the 24-year-old back in the summer: “We are not in a position where we need to lose our top players but at the same time he has a year to go. It is one of those touchy situations where the club has to do what is best for the club, not necessarily what is best for me.”
Luiz has made 118 appearances for Villa since joining from City and will have his sights set on making Brazil's squad for the World Cup this winter, where a strong showing will only increase the interest in him.
