da casino： Arsenal are interested in a deal to bring João Félix to The Emirates in the January transfer window.
What’s the talk?
da apostebet： That’s according to a report by Spanish publication AS (via Sport Witness), who claim that the Gunners are now ‘moving up in the race’ for the Atlético Madrid forward, as Edu and Mikel Arteta do not want to let a ‘golden opportunity’ to land the 23-year-old pass them by in the winter market – especially following Gabriel Jesus’ recent injury.
The report goes on to state that Félix is ‘determined’ to seal a move away from the Metropolitano Stadium in January, with the Portugal international’s agent, Jorge Mendes, said to be ‘knocking on the necessary doors’ to make a move happen, while Atlético are believed to be demanding a figure over €100m (£86m) in order to part with the attacker.
Finally, it is suggested that Arsenal could have already been handed something of a boost in the race for the former SL Benfica starlet, as Félix is said to have no intention of linking up with Paris Saint-Germain – another of the clubs interested in the 23-year-old – due to the severe competition for a place in the Ligue 1 side’s front three.
Griezmann 2.0
Considering just how impressive a talent Félix undoubtedly is, in addition to Arsenal being in desperate need of attacking reinforcements following the loss of Jesus to injury, it is easy to see why Arteta would be interested in a deal to bring the forward to The Emirates ahead of the second half of the 2022/23 Premier League campaign.
Indeed, according to FBref, the £60m-rated playmaker currently ranks in the top 16% of forwards in Europe’s big five leagues for non-penalty goals per 90, as well as the top 31% for shots, the top 10% for assists and the top 21% for xAG – xG which follows a pass that assists a shot – proving just how much of a threat the 23-year-old poses in the final third.
The £240k-per-week star also impresses in possession of the ball, with FBref also ranking Félix in the top 17% of his positional peers for passes attempted per 90, the top 11% for progressive passes, the top 14% for dribbles completed and the top 17% for shot-creating actions – demonstrating that the Portugal sensation is equally creative as he is deadly.
These metrics see FBref list Antoine Griezmann – another player linked with a move to Arsenal in recent months – as the youngster’s most comparable player, something which – considering the fact that the Frenchman has arguably been one of the best players of the Qatar World Cup this winter – is a very big compliment indeed.
Rather unsurprisingly, Félix’s undoubted ability has seen the forward earn a considerable amount of praise over the years, none more so than from the former Benfica U17 coach Renato Paiva, who said of the attacker in an interview with The Athletic last year: “Practically every day, he would do something that left us open-mouthed.
“He has enormous football intelligence. He reads situations really quickly. Obviously, a player has to have quality to be at Benfica in the first place but he had something extra – creativity, a little bit of magic.
“He read the game with great lucidity and matched that with the speed and quality of his execution. His understanding of the game was miles ahead of that of his teammates.”
As such, considering his deadly nature in the final third, his creativity in possession of the ball and his extremely impressive positional versatility – being able to operate from anywhere across a front three, as well as a support striker and in attacking midfield – it would appear an extremely wise move for Arteta to do all he can to land Félix this winter.
Indeed, should the Spaniard manage to convince the “starlet” – as dubbed by Semra Hunter – of a move to The Emirates, not only would the 40-year-old have sourced an incredible substitute to Jesus in attack, but he could also have unearthed the next Griezmann-esque talent – something that is sure to be an extremely exciting prospect for everyone involved with the north London club.