Although it is not common, Real Madrid are fighting to fend off interested parties for some of their key players. For now, academy defender Victor Valdepenas is on the radar of a number of clubs, including Mikel Arteta’s side. Arteta wants to strengthen his defensive positions by adding the left back to his squad.
According to reports, the Gunners have been scouting Victor for some time. Even before he made his senior debut on December 14 against Alaves, Arsenal had already seen his potential playing for Castilla. In the match, the 19-year-old central defender played in the youth setup. Not only did he impress in the La Liga match, but he also impressed Arsenal and several other top European clubs.
From a broad perspective, such an Arsenal scouting mission is rarely based on instinct alone. This interest reflects the trend among top clubs to rely on detailed performance analysis and data-driven scouting. Clubs combine live scouting with advanced statistics, similar to how analysts use them betting tips based on statistics to identify patterns and predict outcomes.
By combining traditional observation with statistical insights, Arsenal want to ensure that every potential move Valdepenas makes is backed by both on-field evidence and long-term development projections.
Where are Arsenal now?
Mikel Arteta’s side currently sit at the top of the Premier League and Champions League tables. This only suggests that Arteta has enough talent to finally win a cup this season after years of no trophies. The transfers of last summer may have played a major role in this, with enormous expenditure being made. At the moment, Arsenal have perhaps the strongest depth in the Premier League.
Interestingly, the Gunners are known not to spend a lot of money on new signings in January, preferring to save for the summer. This could leave some of their fans disappointed this month, based on the fact that there are some brilliant talents that the team may be missing out on.
However, during the previous weekend, when the Gunners were drawn to a stalemate with Nottingham Forest, it is clear that there is still room for improvement, especially when it comes to creating chances and finishing them.
Looking for Real Madrid’s prodigy
There is a good chance that Arsenal will face some problems in convincing the Spanish giants to release their exciting 6ft2in talent. Firstly, it would send a negative message to the Spaniards if they lost such talent to a European rival.
Despite all this, Fabrizio Romano claimed on the Here We Go Podcast that Arsenal had been chasing Valdepenas for several months. This is in the hope of staging a coup like they did last summer with Cristhian Mosquera.
It might be harder than you think!
Besides Real Madrid being a major hurdle to Arsenal’s takeover of Valdepenas, there is also another major hurdle. The Spaniard was born in Madrid and has always wanted to be part of one of the most sought after teams of players worldwide. During his debut, after the match against Alaves, he stated that ever since he started playing football, he had always dreamed of playing for Real Madrid.
His statement only showed that it would take a very strong hand to pry him away from Real Madrid. Furthermore, the club would have a major problem selling one of their own academy players. However, if Arsenal can offer him regular first-team minutes, he may be willing to be tempted.
Arsenal should pay good money for the young Spaniard, but that alone may not be enough to convince Madrid to sell. In fact, the Gunners could be in a better position to sign Guler, who they have also been eyeing. The Turk is only twenty years old and has already fallen out of favor in recent months. So could he be on his way to the Premier League?
Looking at another side
On the same transfer topic, Arsenal have agreed a deal to loan Ethan Nwaneri to Marseille for the second half of the season. Credible reports have stated that Mikel Arteta would like the teenage midfielder to work under former Brighton & Hove Albion manager Roberto De Zerbi.
It is not that Nwaneri has become a bad player. In fact, the young midfielder became the youngest player in Premier League history to make his debut when he made his debut for Arsenal at the age of 15 years and 181 days old. Last season he made 37 appearances for Arsenal and was valuable cover for Bukayo Saka.
But since the signing of more experienced players such as Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze, Nwaneri has only managed 12 appearances in all competitions. In fact, he hasn’t appeared in the Premier League since November. But with Arteta unwilling to let the 18-year-old stagnate in his development, Arsenal have looked at loan moves from a number of clubs across Europe. In fact, many of them are willing to sign Nwaneri permanently, but the Gunners are not ready to lose him yet.
According to a report from The Athletic, Marseille won the race to sign Nwanneri on a six-month loan with no chance of a permanent transfer. So far, the loan amount has not been scrapped, and it will all depend on how many appearances Nwaneri makes in the second half of the season.
So far, Mikel Arteta and his side are doing wonders in the Premier League and Champions League, and fans are really waiting to see what happens from the team as the season comes to an end.
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