Athletic Bilbao forward Nico Williams has claimed that he rejected a move to Barcelona in the summer transfer window, though he has said that he is happy in Spain amidst interest from Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta‘s side were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw by Manchester United on Sunday afternoon, and they could have arguably lost the game late on had it not been for heroics from goalkeeper David Raya.
The Gunners are now 15 points behind league-leaders Liverpool but are more worryingly only three points ahead of third-placed Nottingham Forest.
Fans have questioned why the club did not reinforce in the January transfer window to help aid their side’s struggling attack, with the team having made a late attempt to sign Ollie Watkins from Aston Villa.
Though the Gunners have been long credited with an interest in other forwards such as Nico Williams, the winger has insisted that he is happy at his current club, telling France Football: “Athletic is my family. The bond we have within the club is incredible. I don’t think I’d find this atmosphere anywhere else. At that moment, I made the decision [to stay]. That felt right, and I’m very happy with it.”
The news will come as a blow and Arsenal may find it even more difficult to tempt the forward to leave Spain given his side are currently fourth in La Liga and could qualify for the Champions League.
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Is Williams the right man for Arsenal?
Arsenal have been linked with moves for strikers such as Alexander Isak and Dusan Vlahovic, but Williams would come into the team to replace Gabriel Martinelli.
Martinelli has struggled with injury issues himself this campaign and has only scored six goals in the Premier League in 2024-25, but he only managed to score six times in 2023-24.
The Gunners arguably need to consider upgrading out wide as much as they need to strengthen up front, but Williams has found the back of the net just 14 times in his entire La Liga career, a period that encompasses 125 games.
If Arsenal are to win the Premier League title next term, they will need to ensure that they sign reliable attackers in order to compete with Liverpool, who have scored 17 more goals than them this season.
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Should Arteta be under pressure?
Arteta took over the Londoners part way through the 2019-20 season and managed to win the FA Cup, but despite spending more than £660m since then, the Spaniard has failed to bring more silverware to the Emirates.
Other sides such as Chelsea have spent more since Arteta’s arrival, but they have arguably spent money poorly, while champions-elect Liverpool have only spent around £450m.
The Arsenal boss has been allowed to spend significant sums on the likes of Declan Rice and Kai Havertz, but the latter’s place in the starting lineup has frequently been questioned.
Arteta deserves praise for turning Arsenal’s fortunes around, but unless he can get the Londoners over the line in title races, his future at the club may come under more scrutiny.
