Arsenal 'rejected' two huge players from Barcelona in stunning swap deal during summer transfer window
It would have been a crazy swap deal.
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Tom Jenkins
Arsenal reportedly rejected two separate offers from Barcelona in the summer for Brazilian winger Gabriel Martinelli as Hansi Flick looked to secure a new left winger for the Catalan side.
Barcelona were heavily linked with Spain's Euro 2024 superstar Nico Williams throughout the summer after he lit up the tournament alongside Lamine Yamal.
After a summer of speculation, Williams eventually opted to snub the European giants and extend his stay at Athletic Bilbao by signing an extension until 2027.
Flick remained interested in securing a new signing to operate down the left flank, and according to a report via Football365, Arsenal's Martinelli was top of the German's shopping list as the ‘main Plan B’.
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The report claims Martinelli has been on Barca's radar for quite some time, however, due to the financial difficulties the La Liga side face they offered two players in exchange for the 23-year-old.
The first name thrown into the hat by Barcelona was Ferran Torres, who joined Barcelona from Manchester City for £45m in January 2022.
Torres was understood to be interested in the deal due to the chance to work with Mikel Arteta but at the point he was reportedly offered to the Gunners, during the summer transfer window, the move had been ‘completely ruled out’.
However, Barcelona had offered a more attractive proposal to the Gunners in the shape of former Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen due to Arteta wanting more defensive options.
The Danish international's Premier League experience and versatility are viewed as valuable assets to Arteta and the London club will reportedly remain interested in the defender with his contract running down in 2026.
Despite his rather up-and-down form of late, Martinelli is considered to be untouchable by the Arsenal hierarchy although the Brazil international has been put under pressure for his place in the team from Leandro Trossard.