How’s this for final Champions League matchday drama? Hours before both teams engaged in their league phase deciders, Arsenal reportedly launched a late bid for Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins.
The bid comes with just two days left in the January transfer window and has reportedly been denied by Villa.
A report from our partners in the UK at Sky Sports also says that Arsenal will come back in with a second bid for Watkins.
MORE: Full list of Premier League transfers — January 2025
Villa beat Celtic on Wednesday to seal a bye to the Champions League playoff phase, joining Arsenal as one of the top eight teams from the eight-match league phase.
Sky Sports says that Arsenal are expected to launch an improved bid for Watkins, but that Villa do not view Watkins as a player for sale.
Could Ollie Watkins move from Aston Villa to Arsenal?
This is an audacious move from Arsenal this late in the window, as Villa have also received a huge bid for young center forward Jhon Duran and would have little time to move for a Watkins and Duran replacement.
David Ornstein reports that Duran will have a Thursday medical ahead of a proposed $80 million plus add-ons move to Saudi Arabia. There are reports that Al Nassr will buy Duran or Victor Boniface, not both, so there’s some grey area there.
Watkins grew up an Arsenal supporter and Arsenal have a huge hole at center forward. Landing Watkins could well give Arsenal the juice it needs to win a Premier League title.
Watkins turned 29 in late December and has a contract with Arsenal through 2027-28. He has spoken of his family’s affinity for Arsenal, so this news will surely resonate through the Watkins camp. And at his age, his price tag seems unlikely to grow any higher as time moves forward.
He has 11 goals and nine assists in about 2,200 minutes this season after scoring 24 times with 13 assists last season across all competitions, leading the Premier League in assists.
Leaving Villa would hurt the club’s chances of returning to the Champions League via the Premier League table and certainly harm a realistic chance to win the entire competition this season, while a move to Arsenal would further strengthen the Gunners bid to win both competitions.
