Exclusive: Arsenal ready to rival Newcastle & Aston Villa for €40m attacker transfer | OneFootball

Arsenal are among the numerous clubs eyeing up a potential transfer deal for talented young Bologna forward Santiago Castro, CaughtOffside understands.

We’ve previously reported on Arsenal’s interest in Castro, and it’s our understanding that the Gunners remain keen on the 20-year-old after scouting him in recent Serie A matches.

As well as Arsenal, Castro also has other admirers in the Premier League in the form of Newcastle United, Aston Villa and Everton, while Serie A giants Juventus and Inter Milan also have an interest in keeping him in Italy.

Castro looks like a big prospect for the future, and has contributed four goals and three assists in the Italian top flight so far this season.

The Argentina Under-20 international looks like he has the potential to improve even further, and top clubs are now circling to win the race for his signature, with sources telling CaughtOffside that Bologna could sell for a fee in the region of €40m.

Will we see Santiago Castro seal a transfer to the Premier League?

Santiago Castro celebrates a goal for Bologna (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

Castro looks like he’ll have plenty of options if he does decide to leave Bologna soon, and he’d surely be a smart investment for Arsenal right now.

Mikel Arteta is lacking quality and depth in his attack, having become overly reliant on Bukayo Saka in that area of the pitch as the likes of Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli have suffered significant dips in form.

Castro might feel, however, that he’d get more playing time at a club like Newcastle or Aston Villa, who would surely also look like tempting projects for him.

There’d be competition from Ollie Watkins and Jhon Duran at Villa Park, but Unai Emery has shown a willingness to trust and develop young players.

Newcastle, meanwhile, could do well to think about investing in a top young talent to potentially replace star striker Alexander Isak.