Arsenal reportedly turned down the chance to sign Antoine Semenyo despite the Liverpool and Chelsea target's interest in joining them. The Gunners did not make a move for the AFC Bournemouth star, who is close to making the move to Manchester City.
According to a report in The Athletic, Semenyo's preference was to join Arsenal, the side he supported growing up. Mikel Arteta's side opted against the move despite the in-form player being available for £65 million, as they did not want to add to the squad in the January window.
The report adds that Liverpool were also in the mix, but have faded away despite the club's need for a winger. The report from David Ornstein read:
"There is a feeling Arsenal would have ranked as his first choice had they been firmly at the table, although many tipped Liverpool to prevail given their stuttering title defence, the uncertainty around Mohamed Salah, and Anfield sporting director Richard Hughes having originally recruited him to Bournemouth. Tottenham tried again, proposing a highly competitive salary, only for Semenyo to politely decline their advances, and that resulted in City and United then emerging as the leading contenders."
Semenyo confirmed in an interview with The Athletic last year that he has always supported the Gunners and said:
"I am an Arsenal fan. I don’t conflict the two with my job. It is great to play against Arsenal, a team I have watched all my life, and I want to play for the top clubs as well. In order for that to happen, I need to prove it."
Chelsea made a late inquiry to sign Semenyo, but opted against the move. Manchester City currently lead the chase with Manchester United remainig the only other side interested.
Bournemouth powerless to stop Liverpool and Chelsea target, says Andoni Iraola
AFC Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola has admitted that the club are powerless to stop their star player from leaving. He said that the winger's £65 million release clause puts the other clubs, like Liverpool and Chelsea, in a strong position and said (via ESPN):
"Antoine Semenyo right now is with us. He has trained today with us, very well. I understand that there is a lot of noise around Antoine. But my concern is that it doesn't affect him, his performances and we are seeing that it is not affecting his performances."
"He is very committed to the team and I hope we can keep him there. There are situations that we cannot control, but right now, Antoine is our player and he's going to continue playing for us."
Liverpool are still hunting for the perfect replacement for Luis Diaz, while Chelsea have signed Jamie Gittens and Alejandro Garnacho in the summer to bolster their left wing.