The English Premier League is motoring through the annual festive fixture crush given how packed the month of December is, and whilst fans are largely focused on the battles taking place at both the top and bottom of the division and what results mean for their own teams chances of success, with the New Year approaching, it also means the January transfer window will soon open again and one Arsenal youngster could be on the move as a result.
That inevitably means that at this time of year the newspapers and internet websites are full of transfer rumour mill speculation, and with Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta looking to go one further this season and lift the PL title, after finishing as runners up in the 2022/23 campaign, fans of the Gooners could well be expecting to see another signing or two to further bolster their chances. The January window is notoriously similar to real money slots uk where you simply make your pick and then ultimately take your chance on the odds coming up in your favour.
After surprising plenty last season, Arteta’s team (at the time of writing) sit in second spot in the table, just one point shy of Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool side who currently occupy top spot, and having strengthened the squad over the summer with Kai Havertz coming in from Chelsea, Jurrien Timber from Ajax, the £105 million signing of England and West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice, as well as the loan signing of Brentford goalkeeper David Raya, it is now being suggested that there might be a deal to be done for Juventus talent Moise Kean.
Fans will recognise the now 23 year old’s name as he did previously have a rather unsuccessful spell at Everton, and he only left them on a permanent basis last summer. Having joined the Goodison Park outfit back in 2019, he spent the 2020/21 campaign out on loan with Paris Saint-Germain, and the last two season’s on loan with Juventus before they were obligated to resign him on a permanent basis.
The attacker has not quite found his scoring boots so far in the 2023/24 season, but the 15 capped Italian international’s talent is clear for all to see, and if recent reports are right, The Old Lady may be playing with the idea of using him as a makeweight in what, on paper at least, feels like a very bizarre and bonkers swap deal with the Allianz Stadium outfit apparently keen on bringing in Arsenal Academy starlet Charlie Patino to bolster their own midfield for the second half of the season.
The original reports stem from the Italian press, and it also suggested that Juve continue to have one eye on Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips given he is pretty much completely out of favour with Pep Guardiola, and getting hardly any game time at all.
As for Patino, he has spent the season out on loan with Championship side Swansea City as he continues his development and gains greater experience, and he has had a good first half of the season, scoring three times in 13 starts so far, and having spent a successful spell with Blackpool the previous year, it looks like Arsenal’s faith in his development potential is being more than repaid.
Given what the future could hold for the now 20 year old talent, it seems highly improbable that the north London club would be willing to let him go at this stage of his career, and given his performances in the second tier, he will have eyes on making a Premier League impact next year and justifying the faith that has been placed in him.
That faith goes back a long way as well, as having been drafted in from Luton Town’s Academy set up back in 2015, the England Under 21 international quickly rose through their ranks and was playing for the Under 18 side whilst he was still only 14 years of age.
Head of scouting Sean O’Connor described him as the ‘best player who has ever walked through the doors at Hale End’ whilst scout Brian Stapleton claimed he was ‘the best kid I’ve ever seen’.
Given the Premier League youngsters that have made the switch to European clubs to fast track their first team development in recent years, it is completely understandable as to why Juventus would take a keen interest in him, but it would undoubtedly take a big fee to tempt Arsenal into even thinking about striking a deal, and that is undoubtedly where the potential Swap deal comes into play. Again though, plenty will wonder if Arteta would have an interest in Kean given his spell on Merseyside and his scoring record this season.
They may be willing to lose such a highly rated Academy prospect if it greased the wheels of a deal for a world class talent to jump into their first team and power them to the title, but Kean’s form does not tick that particular box either.
It would be fascinating if anything was to actually come from this, but I doubt I am alone in thinking this will quickly become tomorrow’s chip paper.
