Arsenal plan next move after £60m Ollie Watkins bid rejected as five-man wishlist emerges
Arsenal are set to return to the table with a new bid for Ollie Watkins before Monday's transfer deadline and are also interested in Bayern Munich winger Mathys Tel
by John Cross · The MirrorArsenal have had a £60m bid for Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins turned down - but are ready to make a fresh offer.
And the Gunners are also interested in want-away Bayern Munich winger Mathys Tel, who has indicated his intention to move.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta is desperate to strengthen his strike force before the transfer window shuts on Monday but Watkins must go down as a surprise.
Arsenal are long-term admirers and had Watkins on their short-list before they signed Gabriel Jesus in the summer of 2022. Arteta likes his work-rate, pace and creativity but has generally gone for younger players through his reign but they have money to spend and are also well within their PSR limits.
But Watkins is 29 now, Villa do not want to sell and cannot risk losing the England striker with Saudi interest in Jhon Duran in this window.
Watkins, a lifelong Arsenal fan from a family of Arsenal fans, set a new record on Sunday when he provided an assist against West Ham as he has been involved in 100 Premier League goals - 69 goals and 31 assists - in 169 appearances. Watkins even said it was a “lifelong dream” to play for Arsenal and clearly it is a move which might appeal to him.
Arsenal are keen on RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko and he remains their long term target for the summer but they clearly need a striker to boost their season. Jesus is out with a long-term knee injury and Kai Havertz is their only centre forward so that has left Arsenal ready to go into the winter market.
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Villa do not want to sell and have rejected the opening approach but Arsenal are likely to go back even if their interest is not welcome.
Arsenal also want wide options and French starlet Tel is on their radar after the 19-year-old indicated his desire to move.
Tel may be available after getting fed-up with a lack of minutes in this window and if Arsenal could either do a loan or agreement to make it permanently in the summer then it might appeal. They do face competition with Chelsea also on alert.
They also like Athletic Bilbao's Nico Williams and Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo but neither would be available until the summer.
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