Ruben Neves shouldn’t lead Arsenal to alter their midfield plans. For a long time, Neves and his entourage led us to believe that if he left Wolves, he was destined for Barcelona and that he was not looking to join any other Premier League team.
In reality, English clubs were slow to rush at the chance to sign him, as they likely realized they would have to compete with Barcelona to win over the 26-year-old due to the belief that Wolves were willing to sell him this summer.
Barcelona were keen to recruit him this summer, but their financial troubles have made them unable to do so. They were hoping to get him on a swap deal that would entail Ansu Fati moving to the Molineux. However, Fati has rejected the move, which has “killed” any chances of Neves moving to Camp Nou.
Jorge Mendes, the midfielder’s agent, as per the Sun, has decided to consider where his client could move to, and he has settled on Arsenal and Newcastle, offering his client to the two.
It is well known that Arsenal have in the past wanted Neves, but he falls into the Tielemans and Maddison category of old flames. Arteta has his eyes on new catches. He shouldn’t be tempted to go back for a player he failed to sign when his team needed to determine its direction.
Neves is a good player, but his time to move to the Emirates has passed. Arteta has his midfield dream list: Rice, Caicedo, Xavi, and Lavia; he ought to stick to it.
