Arsenal are on the lookout for offensive reinforcements, and they reportedly come to a decision on Barcelona and Bayern Munich target Nico Williams.
Arsenal have reportedly decided to cool their interest in Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williamswith Barcelona and Bayern Munich the leading candidates in the race for his siganture.
The Gunners’ second-placed finish in the 2024-25 Premier League season saw them end as runners-up for a third consecutive campaign, with many fans and pundits lamenting the club’s lack of firepower.
In fact, manager Mikel Arteta‘s side scored just 69 goals last term, 17 fewer than eventual champions Liverpool managed, and the head coach will likely address his team’s offensive issues in the transfer market.
The Londoners have been linked with a number of forward players given the likes of left-winger Gabriel Theminies and striker Kai Havertz have been criticised.
However, David Ornstein of The Athletic reports that Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams is no longer a candidate to replace Martinelli, though he claimed that Real Madrid attacker Rodrygo is of interest to the Gunners.
Williams showcased during Euro 2024 that he is capable of threatening the best defences, especially when he is paired with creative players capable of playing passes in behind opposition defences.
The 22-year-old possesses immense pace, and he would offer Arsenal a more direct route through to goal, potentially blending well with the incisive passing of talisman Bukayo from on the right flank.
Should Arteta look to sign Rodrygo instead, there is an argument that Arsenal will lose the ability to stretch the pitch, as while the Real Madrid star is more comfortable on the ball than Williams, he is not as athletically gifted.
Martinelli could become an option off the bench, but it remains to be seen if he would be satisfied with a backup role considering he has been part of the starting XI for a number of years.
It should be noted that Williams has never scored more than six goals in a league season – he did register 11 assists in 2023-24 – though Rodrygo has only scored more than nine league goals in a season once.
If Arsenal fail to land the Athletic Bilbao winger, then Arteta must ensure that he finds ways of adding pace into the team in other areas such as in the centre-forward position.
