'I don’t think that’s the end of the story' - Watts claims Arsenal 'remain interested' in target

Journalist Charles Watts has recently claimed that Arsenal fans should stay positive on the club singing Raphinha, as most deals for players do not get done this early in the transfer window – and the Gunners are interested.

Mikel Arteta’s side recently announced a major summer signing, with Porto’s Fabio Vieira joining the club last week for a reported £34.2m, and it does not look like the north London outfit is done there.

One big target the club has been linked with so far this summer is Leeds United star winger Raphinha, who is set to move away from the club amid rumours of strong interest from Barcelona, but Leeds are set on their price for the player and have rejected a bid from their Premier League rivals.

Watts believes Arsenal fans should stay positive the club can capture the £40.5m-rated star, as deals like this do not usually get done so early in the window and if the bid was accepted, it could have indicated that the club had overpaid for the player.

He said: “That has moved forward in the last sort of day or so, a bid now has gone in for [Raphinha].

“Not sure on the actual figures yet, that hasn’t come out, but it wasn’t enough, Leeds have rejected it. But I don’t think that’s the end of the story. If you put a bid in for a player this early in the window and it gets accepted straight away, you’ve probably bid a little bit too much, to be fair.

“I can’t imagine this is just going to be one bid and then Arsenal are going to accept defeat and go away and look at other players. They are certainly going to remain interested in Raphinha, he is a player they want, he is a player Mikel Arteta wants, and it’s just a case of seeing what they can get done with Leeds.”

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