In the midst of the Athletic’s (subscription required) brilliant in-depth piece on the impact of Brexit on Premier League transfers and the influx of Under-18s arrivals this summer, a bit of concerning news was shed in relation to Arsenal.
The Athletic report that Arsenal – and north London rivals Spurs – were both beaten to the signing of 16-year-old Lamare Bogarde by Aston Villa.
Many Premier League clubs were active when it came to the recruitment of Under-18s players from Europe this summer, as this represented the last chance to do before the Brexit rules came.
It’s not explicitly stated why the versatile defensive midfielder decided not to join the Gunners, but Villa’s ‘very aggressive’ approach and heavy scouting of talents was noted by the Athletic.
Arsenal did a handful of their own business at youth level, with quite a few low-profile talents arriving like George Lewis and Tim Akinola after his release from Huddersfield.
Bogarde is capped at Under-16s level for the Netherlands and has recently been promoted to Under-23s action by the Villains in Premier League 2.