Summer Arsenal target remains on transfer shortlist for January | OneFootball

Douglas Luiz remains on Arsenal’s shortlist for the January transfer window, according to Fabrizio Romano, with no decisions made yet.

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND: Phil Foden of Manchester City battles for possession with Douglas Luiz of Aston Villa during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Manchester City at Villa Park on September 03, 2022. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Writing for CaughtOffside, Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Douglas Luiz remains in Arsenal’s shortlist for the January transfer window. Romano adds that nothing has yet been decided.

The Gunners have also reportedly been tracking Danilo of Palmeiras, so they evidently aren’t putting all their eggs in one basket. But Luiz is still a target after Arsenal’s three summer bids.

Mikel Arteta’s transfer team made deadline-day offers valued at £20m, £23m, and £25m for Luiz in the summer, but Villa turned them all down, apparently hoping to receive £40m.

But with the Brazilian’s contract running down in 2023, perhaps Arsenal’s negotiating position will be stronger in the January window.

The tabloids report that Arsenal are hoping to land Luiz for closer to £15m this winter.

Addressing Luiz’s contract situation recently, Steven Gerrard suggested Villa haven’t made any progress on an extension. But they’re still hoping to hold onto him.

“No news in terms of him extending his stay here, so that situation hasn’t changed, but what I would say is that he’s very focused and has trained well,” Gerrard said.

“Am I surprised by the speculation? No, because we have got a young Brazilian player who is a fantastic talent, so I expect to be asked this question a lot as the season progresses.

“We want him to stay here, the owners were very strong in keeping him here.

“We didn’t obviously want to lose him on the final day and he has performed very well since and he has trained very well and he is ready to go at the weekend.”