Arsenal did try and sign Khvicha Kvaratskhelia before he made his €10m (£8.7m) move to Napoli, according to journalist Alfredo Pedulla.

The reporter claims that when it emerged that the Gunners were pursuing the Georgian international, Napoli did everything they could to stop the deal from being hijacked:

“Let’s start with the €10m paid out by Napoli when they realised that there was competition from Arsenal on the player: Napoli kidnapped the player telling the agents not to answer any phone calls”.

Kvaratskhelia has had an outstanding start to life in Italy, having scored seven goals and provided eight assists in 14 appearances so far for Napoli.

The 21-year-old has even been compared to Liverpool’s Mo Salah by former England manager Fabio Capello, who claimed the winger’s style of play was similar to the Egyptian’s:

“I am curious to see how Napoli do, especially Kvaratskhelia, who in his movements reminds me of an early Mohamed Salah.”

Even though Mikel Arteta’s side did miss out on Kvaratskhelia, it does demonstrate that the club’s scouting department are doing their jobs. Not many other teams had the Georgian on their radar, and it seems he is a precocious young talent.

Arsenal are likely to be in the market for a winger in January, but most reports suggest that Shakhtar Donetsk’s Mykhaylo Mudryk will be their main target.