Who are Arsenal trying to sign?

Arsenal are positioning themselves to sign Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams according to Teamnewsandtix, who Football Park ranks as a tier two source.

The 22-year-old was one of Spain’s key players in their European Championships success this summer and has thus caught the attention of many clubs in Europe.

Although it looks as though Barcelona are front runners for his signature, the Gunners are positioning themselves for a potential move if finances deter the Catalan side.

🚨 @Teamnewsandtix: “If Barcelona can’t get Nico Williams done for financial reasons, then Arsenal are positioning themselves. He is our TOP choice. I know Arsenal tried really hard to get him in before #Euro2024, but Barcelona was his preference.”

[@charles_watts YouTube] #afc pic.twitter.com/EtsxCzHE0P

— afcstuff (@afcstuff) July 19, 2024

Why is Nico Williams so sought after?

Since his promotion to the Bilbao first team from the club’s academy, Williams’ rise has been meteoric. The Spaniard made his LaLiga debut at 18-years-old in 2021 and has been a first-team regular ever since. The winger has 122 senior appearances for the Basque club and had the best season of his career in 2023/24. As well as scoring nine goals, Williams provided 17 assists for both club and country over the course of the season.

As a result, the winger was rewarded with a spot in Spain’s Euros squad for this summer’s tournament. In recent times, the 2012 winners had not had much success in major tournaments. Spain failed to progress past the round of 16 stage in the 2014, 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups. Their luck was not much better in the Euros either with their best achievement being a semi-final appearance in 2021.

However, after a 3-0 win over Croatia in their first group match, it was clear that the days of underperforming were behind them. Luis de la Fuente’s side advanced from their group with flying colours, winning all three matches without conceding a single goal.

Going into the knockout stages, Spain were one of the favourites to win the tournament and certainly delivered on their high expectations. They fought past the likes of Germany and France en route to the final in Berlin, which they were favourites to triumph in. As he had done in the rest of the tournament, Williams thrived against England. The winger scored the opening goal of the match just after half time to give Spain the lead and was a constant threat throughout the evening.

🇪🇸 SPAIN LEAD IN THE EUROPEAN FINAL! 🇪🇸

A lightning-fast start! ⚡️#ESPENG | #Euro2024 pic.twitter.com/xlVffkulJm

— ITV Football (@itvfootball) July 14, 2024

Despite being pinned back by Cole Palmer’s 73rd-minute leveller, Spain were resilient and retook control just nine minutes from the final whistle. Mikel Oyarzabal met Marcus Cucurella’s cross inside the box and slotted past Jordan Pickford to give Spain a record fourth European title.

Alongside five of his teammates, Williams was named in the team of the tournament which was selected by UEFA’s Technical Observer panel. He recorded two goals and one assist over the course of the month.

👕✨ Introducing the UEFA EURO 2024 Team of the Tournament, as selected by UEFA's Technical Observer panel.#EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/ITp3ipcWxF

— UEFA EURO 2024 (@EURO2024) July 16, 2024

Who is interested in signing Nico Williams?

As well as Arsenal and Barcelona, both Manchester United and Liverpool are reportedly interested in the 22-year-old.

Williams has a £49 million release clause in his Bilbao contract but is rumoured to be demanding a significant wage package to move elsewhere.

🚨🇪🇸 The release clause into Nico Williams' contract at Athletic Club is worth almost €58m, after agreement on new deal few weeks ago.

"The interest is normal but Nico is very happy in Bilbao, we are very happy with him. We're not worried", Athletic president Uriarte said. pic.twitter.com/KYT51LKy3r

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 21, 2024