Potential Arsenal boost as Chelsea cool transfer interest in 21-year-old winger

Arsenal may have been handed a boost in their rumoured pursuit of the transfer of Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams.

The 21-year-old is an exciting young talent and Charles Watts recently told CaughtOffside that the Gunners have him high on their list of summer targets in the attacking midfield department.

It may be that Arsenal are now in an even better position as Chelsea seem to have cooled their interest in Williams due to his wage demands, according to Ben Jacobs in his column for Si Phillips Talks Chelsea.

Williams looks like he could surely be a hit in the Premier League for the present and future, giving clubs a player who could make an immediate impact but also an exciting option for the long-term as his best years are surely still ahead of him.

Williams transfer: Arsenal now more likely than Chelsea?

Of course, just because Chelsea aren’t ready to pay up for Williams, doesn’t mean that Arsenal will automatically move into pole position for the Spain international.

But it’s useful for AFC if they do decide to step up their interest in Williams, as it always helps if there isn’t a major competitor to potentially drive up the price of the transfer fee or wages.

Williams is a pacey wide-player with an eye for goal and it would surely be good business by Arsenal if they could bring the youngster in to provide Mikel Arteta with a bit more depth in his front three.

The north London giants have been overly reliant on Bukayo Saka in the last few years, and they won’t want to burn him out, while Gabriel Martinelli’s form suffered a bit last season, leaving the team without much of an alternative in that role.

With Reiss Nelson struggling for playing time, he perhaps doesn’t have Arteta’s trust, so fans will no doubt be hoping Williams or someone similar can come in and provide a better option.