Arsenal Join Barcelona In The Race For Premier League Top Rated Striker
Arsenal are considering a move for young Aston Villa striker John Duran ahead of the January transfer window.
The 20-year-old Colombian forward has been in top form this season, scoring six goals in his first 11 games in all competitions. Despite his impressive performances, Duran made limited regular starting appearances and mainly played as a back-up to Villa’s first-choice striker Ollie Watkins.
Duran came into the limelight after scoring against Liverpool in Villa’s final home game last season and impressed with his goal of the season in Villa’s Champions League win over Bayern Munich this season.
However, his only start of the 2024/25 season came in the third round of the Carabao Cup against Wycombe, where he scored the decisive goal. The striker’s scoring ability has attracted the attention of some of Europe’s top clubs.
As reported by AS Colombia, Arsenal and Barcelona have inquired about the possibility of signing Duran in the upcoming winter transfer window. Chelsea and West Ham also made contact with the player in the summer transfer window, but no suitable offers were made. But Villa have made it clear they do not intend to sell Duran for less than €90m (£75m).
The club are confident of keeping the highly-rated striker who is tied to a long-term contract. Villa sporting director Monchi said around 40 clubs were interested in the summer but none of the offers matched the club’s asking price. He said:
“We have two very strong strikers, him and Watkins,” Monchi told Sky Italia. “Duran wanted more minutes, but without an important offer, we were convinced he would stay here. Emery has a lot of faith in him, and we are relaxed about the situation.”
Arsenal, who had been linked with several top strikers last summer, including Aleksandar Isak, Benjamin Sesko, Dusan Vlahovic, Victor Osimhen, and Victor Gyokeres, ultimately failed to sign a striker.
