BRATISLAVA, SLOVAKIA: Brooke Norton-Cuffy of U21 England celebrates with the UEFA European Under-21 Championship trophy after his team's victory in...
BRATISLAVA, SLOVAKIA: Brooke Norton-Cuffy of U21 England celebrates with the UEFA European Under-21 Championship trophy after his team's victory in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship 2025 Final match between England and Germany at National Football stadium on June 28, 2025. (Photo by Christian Hofer/Getty Images)
Arsenal missed out on a potential January payday after former Gunner Brooke Norton-Cuffy decided to remain with Genoa until the summer.
BOLOGNA, ITALY: Brooke Norton-Cuffy of Genoa battles for possession with Nicolo Cambiaghi of Bologna during the Serie A match between Bologna and Genoa at Stadio Renato Dall'Ara on May 24, 2025. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)
BOLOGNA, ITALY: Brooke Norton-Cuffy of Genoa battles for possession with Nicolo Cambiaghi of Bologna during the Serie A match between Bologna and Genoa at Stadio Renato Dall'Ara on May 24, 2025. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)
Right up until the end of the January transfer window, it seemed likely that Genoa right-back and former Arsenal academy player Brooke Norton-Cuffy would be on the move in a permanent transfer.
Yet the deal never came about, with Sky Sports reporting that Norton-Cuffy’s preference had always been to wait until the summer to consider his options.
Sky claim Norton-Cuffy had offers from three Serie A teams and at least one Premier League side, believed to be Everton. But after considering all his options, the 22-year-old decided to prioritise the minutes he’s already getting with Genoa.
EMPOLI, ITALY: Liberato Cacace of Empoli FC battles for the ball with Brooke Norton-Cuffy of Genoa CFC during the Serie A match between Empoli and Genoa at Stadio Carlo Castellani on December 28, 2024. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)
EMPOLI, ITALY: Liberato Cacace of Empoli FC battles for the ball with Brooke Norton-Cuffy of Genoa CFC during the Serie A match between Empoli and Genoa at Stadio Carlo Castellani on December 28, 2024. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)
The disappointment for Arsenal is that they’ve missed out on another chance to cash in on Norton-Cuffy through their 20% sell-on clause in the player’s Genoa contract.
There was talk that Genoa wanted €20m for a January transfer, so Arsenal would have netted a tidy fee if a deal had gone ahead.
Arsenal have already received an initial €2m for Norton-Cuffy’s sale to Genoa in 2024, plus another €2m in potential add-ons. Given Norton-Cuffy’s consistent appearances and Genoa’s survival in Serie A last season, it’s likely at least some of those add-ons have been activated.
GENOA, ITALY: Patrick Vieira, Head Coach of Genoa, gives instructions to his players Johan Vasquez and Brooke Norton-Cuffy during the Serie A match between Genoa CFC and US Lecce at Luigi Ferraris Stadium on August 23, 2025. (Photo by Simone Arveda/Getty Images)
GENOA, ITALY: Patrick Vieira, Head Coach of Genoa, gives instructions to his players Johan Vasquez and Brooke Norton-Cuffy during the Serie A match between Genoa CFC and US Lecce at Luigi Ferraris Stadium on August 23, 2025. (Photo by Simone Arveda/Getty Images)
Norton-Cuffy has been a regular for Genoa in 2025/26, only missing two Serie A matches so far. One of those was through suspension, the other through injury, and the 22-year-old started all of the remaining 21 games.
Genoa have managed to drag themselves out of the relegation zone with Norton-Cuffy’s help, now sitting in 14th place and six points clear of the drop.