'There were some conversations': Arsenal discussed move for player likened to Thierry Henry before the deadline - journalist

Arsenal were linked with a new forward for much of the January transfer window, but ended up signing nobody by the time the market closed.

Arsenal did try their luck with a bid for Ollie Watkins, but Aston Villa swiftly rejected their offer and nothing more came of it.

There were also links between Arsenal and Mathys Tel. TBR Football understands Tel’s camp encouraged Arsenal to make a move, but they opted against it.

This allowed Tottenham Hotspur to swoop in and sign Tel on loan from Bayern Munich, just days after Tel initially rejected Spurs.

Now, Charles Watts has lifted the lid on the links between Arsenal and Tel, as well as the interest they had in Watkins.

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Arsenal rejected Mathys Tel as they wanted an out-and-out striker

Watts admitted that Arsenal were never actually that close to signing a new attacker in the January transfer window.

The journalist acknowledged that there was “genuine interest” in Ollie Watkins, but not at the price Villa would have wanted for him.

Meanwhile, there were conversations at Arsenal about Tel, but the Gunners wanted an out-and-out striker rather than someone who prefers to play off the left.

“From my understanding they were never really that close to signing an attacker in January,” Watts wrote on CaughtOffside.

“There was genuine interest in Watkins late on in the window, but never really at the price that Aston Villa would have been looking for.

“Had Villa come back to the table in the last couple of days I think Arsenal would have looked to get something done closer to their £40million valuation, but that never happened and never even looked like happening once Jhon Duran was sold.

“There was lots of chatter about Mathys Tel, but I was told that one never really got off the ground.

“There were some conversations given his obvious availability, but Arsenal were focused more on exploring moves for an out and out striker, rather than a forward who can play centrally but prefers to play off the left as they already believed they are well stocked in that area.”

What Tel could’ve brought to Arsenal

Admittedly, Arsenal are well stocked in terms of players who can play all across the front line.

However, Tel has been earning comparisons to Thierry Henry and, as such, the Gunners should maybe have considered this.

Football Talent Scout gave Tel a 10 out of 10 for potential in 2021, deeming him a “world-class” prospect, and compared him to Thierry Henry.

Kulig also deemed Tel a “complete forward” as well as a “well rounded player who has all the qualities to play on many other positions and attacking roles”.

Indeed, Fabrizio Romano also reported that Henry is one of Tel’s idols, so the opportunity to turn him into the next Henry would’ve been an interesting one for Arsenal.

At the same time, Tottenham didn’t sign Tel permanently, nor is there an obligation to buy, so the door may still be open for Arsenal to land him in the summer.