Arsenal has faced a setback in their chase of Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams with the likes of Barcelona, Chelsea, and Liverpool interested in his signature.
The winger has been one of the hottest prospects this summer and has generated a lot of newspaper columns discussing over where he will play this coming season.
However, despite vast interest in him, Bilbao is confident they can hold onto him this summer and insist that Williams is not for sale.
Bilbao manager Ernesto Valverde told the Spanish media: “I have no doubts about Nico, he looks good and happy. This year we have many challenges ahead of us and I’m sure Nico will love to face them.
“He hasn’t been the only player who has had to live with rumors because the market will be open until the end of August. He’s a great player and there may be clubs who might be interested in him, but he’s happy with us and we’re happy with him. We’re counting on Nico for when he returns from the holidays.”
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, and Barcelona still targeting Williams
The race for Williams is very much still on despite Valverde’s comments. The chasing clubs have struggled due to the Spanish international’s hefty wage demands.
Williams has a reasonable £49m release clause in his contract which should make it relatively easy for one of the teams to sign him. However, the 22-year-old has demands of a wage of £300k a week, which could cause issues.
Why is Nico Williams so in demand?
Nico Williams is one of the most exciting prospects in world football. After a successful season with Bilbao, the 22-year-old shone with his national side at Euro 2024.
He made 31 La Liga appearances last season, scoring five goals and recording 14 assists, becoming one of Bilbao’s star players in the process.
It seems his preferred destination is to remain in Spain, but if Arsenal, Chelsea, or Liverpool can muster up his £300k wage demands, then he could be on the move to England.