Mirror Football takes a look at two of the biggest headlines from the Emirates Stadium as Arsenal begin the new year on top of the Premier League
Mikel Arteta, Manager of Arsenal, and his assistant Albert Stuivenberg look on during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion at the Emirates Stadium on December 27, 2025 in London, England.
Mikel Arteta's side are coming off the back of a huge victory
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Arsenal’s thrilling victory over Aston Villa earlier this week sent a message of intent to their Premier League rivals. The Gunners finally overcame their poor record against Unai Emery’s Villa by securing a 4-1 win at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday, ensuring that they remained top of the table at the turn of the year.
Mikel Arteta’s side have no time to rest on their laurels, however, with another difficult game coming on Saturday afternoon in the form of a trip to Bournemouth. Bringing all three points back to north London without suffering any more injuries will be at the top of Arteta’s agenda, given his side’s injury woes this season.
The opening of the January transfer window also provides an opportunity for the Arsenal hierarchy to explore reinforcements and potential sales in the transfer market. Now, Mirror Football brings you two of the latest stories from N5.
Gunners involved in £65m transfer
Arsenal will inadvertently delay Antoine Semenyo’s increasingly likely transfer to Manchester City. City are reportedly in the final stages of signing the Ghanaian winger from Bournemouth for £65million, with the move expected to be completed shortly.
However, Cherries boss Andoni Iraola wants Semenyo in his side to face Arsenal on Saturday. The manager said after Semenyo played the full 90 minutes against Chelsea on Tuesday: "I don't know what is going to happen, but he will definitely play [against Arsenal]. This is not his last game.
Antoine Semenyo of AFC Bournemouth during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Bournemouth at Old Trafford on December 15, 2025 in Manchester, England
Antoine Semenyo is on the verge of a move to Man City
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"He needs to recover because we play Arsenal at home in another three days. Against [the team] top of the league, he will be an important player for us, yes."
Semenyo will hope to impress his new City team-mates before even arriving at the Etihad by striking a blow to title rivals Arsenal in that fixture.
Other clubs interested in Nwaneri
Ethan Nwaneri can be forgiven if he had mixed feelings about the win over Aston Villa this week. The 18-year-old starlet found himself left out of the squad altogether to face Emery’s side.
This latest blow comes after a notable reduction in his minutes this season, making just six Premier League appearances compared to his breakout season last term where he scored four goals in 26 league outings.
Ethan Nwaneri of Arsenal inspects the pitch prior to the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD6 match between Club Brugge KV and Arsenal FC at Jan Breydelstadion on December 10, 2025 in Bruges, Belgium.
Ethan Nwaneri is struggling for game time(Image: Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
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With the likes of Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino, Eberechi Eze and now injury returnee Kai Havertz ahead of the youngster in the pecking order, there is an increasing feeling that Nwaneri should seek a January move away in order to continue his development.
His talent has unsurprisingly attracted attention from other clubs, according to The Athletic. Yet, the report, which doesn't mention which clubs are interested, also claims Arsenal will be reluctant to lose either Nwaneri or Myles Lewis-Skelly this month, having recently signed both to new long-term contracts.
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