Arsenal Sporting Director Edu once tried to help Pep Guardiola in his quest to make sure that Douglas Luiz played for Manchester City.
That is according to The Mirror, which has noted Arsenal’s interest in Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz.
So, what has been reported about Arsenal, Edu, Douglas Luiz, Pep Guardiola and Manchester City? Let’s take a look.
What’s the story?
Well, according to The Mirror, Arsenal are interested in signing Douglas Luiz from Premier League rivals Aston Villa in the January transfer window.
The report has claimed that Arsenal Sporting Director Edu personally wants his Brazilian compatriot at the Emirates Stadium.
Villa do not want to sell Luiz. The Villans, now managed by former Arsenal boss Unai Emery, are in the running for the Premier League top four and beat Tottenham Hotspur this past weekend.
The Mirror has noted that Edu, then Brazil’s general co-ordinator, supported City in their case to get Luiz a work permit in the summer of 2018 to play in the Premier League.
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City manager Pep Guardiola was desperately keen on having Luiz in his squad and “recorded a personal video explaining how he would utilise the then-20-year-old within his Premier League-winning City squad” to convince the authorities to grant him the work permit, according to the report.
It failed and Luiz ended up moving to Villa on a permanent contract in 2019. He was was described as “unbelievable” by ex-Villa manager Dean Smith in The Birmingham Mail in June 2020.
Arsenal could struggle to sign Douglas Luiz in January
In my view, Arsenal could really struggle to sign Douglas Luiz from Premier League rivals Aston Villa in the January transfer window.
Unless Arsenal offer a ridiculous amount of money, there is no incentive for Villa to sell one of their best and most important players in the middle of the season.
Villa are aiming to finish in the Premier League top four this season, so why would Unai Emery sell Luiz, especially to his former club Arsenal? It makes no sense whatsoever.