Arsenal’s transfer hopes handed fatal blow as target pens new ‘long-term’ contract

Arsenal’s efforts to sign Douglas Luiz look to have been put to bed for good.

The Gunners made moves to sign the Villa midfielder late in the summer window, but come up short. Mikel Arteta made no bones about wanting another midfielder late in the window, with Youri Tielemans appearing the most likely option.

But in the end, Arsenal made offers to sign Villa’s Luiz, only to see each of their bids rejected. The offers themselves were somewhat surprising given some of the other players the Gunners were linked with. But what was even more surprising was Villa’s resilience.

Luiz was set to be out of contract next summer, and Villa faced losing him for nothing after rejecting what would likely have been around £20million from Arsenal. Villa did that because they felt confident of signing Luiz to new terms, something that hasn’t actually looked likely over recent weeks.

But that all changed today when Luiz penned a new ‘long-term contract’ to remain at Villa after all, all-but removing himself from the market for the winter and next summer. The actual length of the contract hasn’t been disclosed, but it has been described as ‘long-term’ by Villa.

“I’m so happy,” Luiz said after putting pen-to-paper. “I’m so happy in this club and I love this club. I love the people here, the staff and the players. I’m so comfortable here and I’m so happy.

“I love this club. This club opened the door for me when I came to England to play in the Premier League. I’m so happy because I’m staying here and my choice is here.”

The move is a littloe surprising given some of the clubs that have been linked with Luiz ahead of his contract expiring. Though, Villa are well-backed financially, and they have done enough to convince the midfielder to stay, be it for financial or emotional reasons - or most likely a combination of both.