Arsenal have been dealt a potential setback to their hopes of securing a future transfer deal for Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves.
After being linked with a move for the midfielder in the past, it seems as though Arsenal may be at risk of losing the opportunity to sign Neves in the coming months.
According to a recent report from Sport (via TEAMTALK), Barcelona have an opportunity to sign the Wolves figure on loan in the upcoming January transfer window with an obligation to sign him permanently.
The report also adds that another option the La Liga club has is to sign the Portuguese international in the next summer window for a price lower than the €50million (£43.5 million) that Wolves apparently wanted for him in the last window.
Wolves signed the midfielder back in the 2017 summer transfer window from FC Porto in a deal worth a reported fee of £15.8m.
Since then, the 25-year-old has gone on to make 224 appearances for the Midlands club across all competitions, during which he has scored 26 goals and delivered 12 assists along the way.
Despite Wolves having a difficult season so far, Neves has shown how impressive he is and why he’d be a useful addition to Mikel Arteta’s squad.
For example, with 11 games played, the midfielder has made more passes into the final third of the pitch (75) than any other Wolves player, as well as making more blocks (19) and interceptions (17) than any other player at the club.
He has also made more tackles in the midfield (12) and attacking thirds (7) of the pitch than any of his teammates, further highlighting how effective the £58k-per-week figure can be across the pitch with and without the ball.
Hailed as an “outstanding” player by journalist Tim Spiers, Neves could be the ideal signing for Arsenal given how they were unable to land Douglas Luiz from Aston Villa towards the end of the previous summer transfer window.
However, now that Barcelona’s possible options to sign the Wolves star have been detailed, the Gunners may have a challenge on their hands if they want to bring the midfielder to the Emirates.
