Villarreal of Spain winger, Samuel Chukwueze has gained fresh transfer interest from the English Premier League, with links from Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton and West Ham United reportedly coming his way, megasportsarena.com reports.
In what could be a return to the attraction he gained from Arsenal after starring for Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets en route to winning gold at Chile 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup, ‘Samu’ could now eventually be on his way to The Gunners this summer.
However, the link with Arsenal is not solitary for the product of Diamond Football Academy of Umuahia, as the fellow-London-based duo of West Ham and Chelsea as well as Everton are also said to be keen on a deal for him this summer.
The report adds that interest in Chukwueze is coming after he picked up form in recent weeks, as he got an assist that helped Villarreal beat Dinamo Zagreb of Croatia in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa League and then netted his first career brace last weekend against Levante in the Spanish LaLiga.
Spanish transfer market website, Fichajes has now reported that at least four EPL clubs are interested in buying Chukwueze this summer but they face competition from LaLiga giants, Atlético de Madrid, who have reportedly been monitoring him for almost three years.
However, for a deal to pull through, any club keen on buying ‘Samu’ will have to meet terms of Villarreal’s release clause of 100 million euro before The Yellow Submarine would sanction a deal for the left-footed dazzler, who has participated in 11 goals across 36 appearances in all competitions this season.
Incidentally, Chukwueze was courted by Arsenal before he eventually signed for Villarreal in the summer of 2017, and, though he initially struggled at the start of this season, The Gunners’ former coach, Unai Emery, who is his handler at his present base, put the lad’s struggles down to fitness issues.
Emery pointed out that Chukwueze was not at his best because he was struggling with an injury, but the Spanish tactician also conceded that the fair-skinned lads also faced some technical and tactical issues, as he was not played in his preferred position during the earlier round of games.
A turnaround has, however, now come for him, as Chukwueze has now scored four goals and provided seven assists in 35 outings across all competitions for The Yellow Submarine this term, thereby leaving Emery banking on him for more theatrics from their upcoming home fixture versus Deportivo Alavés.
Emery stated: “Samu has been playing for two games at a level that, throughout the season, he had occasionally done little, due to minor injuries or perhaps not being quite the way he wanted on the pitch, but now he has.
“So, if he is not on the field of play, we have to find other alternatives or ways to try to meet those characteristics. We cannot, in a week where many games are played, not take into account the ability to respond at the mental level and at the physical level.”
