According to recent reports, Arsenal lead the race to sign Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams.

The Gunners have had Williams as a transfer target since the summer when they were linked to signing the 22-year-old.

However, the Spaniard’s wage demands ended up putting Arsenal off meaning that Williams ended up staying at Bilbao despite the amount of transfer speculation across the summer period.

La Liga side Barcelona were the other major player in the race for the winger but they, like Arsenal, were put off his wages over the summer period.

According to the Mirror, Arsenal lead the race to sign Williams now as Barcelona are looking at alternatives due to the fact that they won’t be able to meet the winger’s wage demands.

Williams has a £54.2m release clause attached to his contract which the Gunners would be free to pay and sign him in January if Mikel Arteta wished to.

Arsenal face Premier League competition for Williams

Over the summer, the winger was subject to a lot of transfer interest from the Premier League as Liverpool and Chelsea were both likes to signing the Spaniard.

However, both, much like Arsenal weren’t keen on his sky-high wage demands which may decrease assuming that Williams wants a move away from Bilbao to a big Premier League club.

Liverpool are the more likely suitor between the Reds and Chelsea as they will be considering the 22-year-old as a long-term replacement for Mohammed Salah who becomes a free agent in June 2025.

How would Nico Williams fit into Mikel Arteta’s starting XI

Due to the quality of Bukayo Saka, there is no way that Nico Williams would play on the right-hand side for Arsenal as Mikel Arteta wouldn’t want to move or drop his star man.

However, the Spaniard can also play on the left which might put Gabriel Martinelli‘s position on the other side in jeopardy as Williams can be an exceptional player.

So far this season, the Bilbao winger has made 15 appearances, scoring two goals and two assists.