Arsenal to hand 'angry' Aston Villa improved Ollie Watkins offer | OneFootball

Arsenal are reportedly preparing an improved bid for Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins in a late scramble to secure an attacking January reinforcement.

News broke on Wednesday evening that the Gunners had tabled a £60m offer for the 29-year-old forward. Aston Villa firmly rebuffed that proposal and were said to be "angry" with Arsenal's approach at this late stage in the window.

However, Mikel Arteta's side have not lost hope and are lining up a larger sum according to the Daily Mail. The report claims that Villa have no intention of selling their first-choice centre-forward, who started and scored in the club's Champions League victory over Celtic in midweek.

Villa boss Unai Emery echoed that stance by telling his post-match press conference: "I don't want [Watkins to leave].

Ollie Watkins scored his first Champions League goal on the same day as Arsenal's initial bid / Dan Mullan/GettyImages

"It is good news to have an offer from other clubs, or interest. It is good. But we want to keep our sporting objective through the players we have in the squad."

Emery, who was formerly Arsenal's manager, conceded that no individual is unsellable, explaining: "Every player can be in the market in case it is good for the club, the player and the team but to get this deal of course we are going to be very demanding as well and Watkins is our striker."

Fabrizio Romano also reported that Villa are "determined" to reject Arsenal's improved offer.

The firm rebuttal of these lucrative approaches for a player who will turn 30 next year is underpinned by the impending departure of Jhon Duran. Watkins' under-used strike partner is eight years younger than his teammate and has attracted interest from the likes of Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain this month.

However, Saudi Arabia appears to be Duran's most likely destination, with Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr side tipped to seal a bumper transfer worth an initial €77m (£64m) before add-ons are taken into account according to Romano.