Arsenal have made a shock inquiry to sign Vinícius Júnior from Real Madrid, the Brazil forward with one year left on his contract at the Bernabéu. The move is at a formative stage as Mikel Arteta seeks a marquee signing to build on the club’s first Premier League title in more than two decades.
Vinícius scored 22 goals for Real last season and four for Brazil at the World Cup, but his future is uncertain after José Mourinho’s return as manager. Mourinho, who signed a three-year deal, was criticised for comments he made after Vinícius accused Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni of racially abusing him during a Champions League tie in February. Prestianni was banned for six matches after admitting homophobic language.
“Arsenal make shock inquiry for Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr with one year left on his contract.”
Real could cash in on Vinícius rather than risk losing him for nothing when his contract expires. Any deal would likely break Arsenal’s transfer record, with the club already having bolstered their attack by signing Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge for £34m this week. Tzolis followed Piero Hincapié, who made his loan permanent, and goalkeeper Illan Meslier, a free agent from Leeds, as Arsenal’s third summer addition.
News of the Vinícius approach emerged less than 24 hours after the Gunners agreed a deal for Cardiff City’s youngest-ever player, Axel Donczew. The 16-year-old Wales under-19 international has already had a medical, according to Fabrizio Romano. Donczew made his debut for Cardiff as a second-half substitute during an EFL Trophy match against Newport County in October, aged 15 years and 234 days, breaking a record set by teammate Rob Tankiewicz earlier that match. Aaron Ramsey had held the Bluebirds’ record for 18 years before being signed by Arsenal for £7m in 2018.
Donczew, who has played just twice for Cardiff, missed pre-season following interest from Fulham. Cardiff head coach Brian Barry-Murphy said: “I think if they’re good enough, and he clearly is, then they’re old enough for us.” He hailed Donczew as a “brilliant player”. The teenager, who also holds eligibility for Poland, has 11 appearances for Wales at various age levels.
Arsenal are also keen on Newcastle’s Bruno Guimarães. After a 1-1 pre-season draw at Gateshead, Eddie Howe said: “We don’t want to lose our best players. I don’t know what’s going to happen with Bruno’s future. That’s for other people to speculate about.”