Arsenal may miss out on signing Jorrel Hato from Ajax
Arsenal have been dealt a blow in their pursuit of Ajax defender Jorrel Hato, who is now in talks to extend his contract in Amsterdam.
That’s according to De Telegraaf, which has claimed negotiations between Hato and Ajax are ‘gaining momentum’ again after previously stalling.
Hato, 17, is currently only under contract until the end of next season. His situation has alerted Arsenal, who already signed Jurrien Timber from Ajax last year and could take another defender away from the Dutch giants.
Arsenal are impressed by Hato’s potential, plus the fact he is left-footed and can operate either centrally or as a full-back.
The Gunners currently have Gabriel Magalhaes and Jakub Kiwior as left-footed centre-backs, while their options at left-back are relatively limited, as a recent injury to Oleksandr Zinchenko has exposed.
One for the future, Hato has been identified as a possible target to strengthen the Arsenal rearguard in the long term.
In theory, he could become a replacement for Kiwior, whose gametime since joining from Spezia this time last year has not been particularly large, leading some Serie A clubs to consider him as a target.
If Kiwior leaves, Arsenal might try to sign Hato as their new backup player behind Gabriel.
According to De Telegraaf, though, the teenager is now close to reaching an ‘agreement in principle’ to extend his Ajax contract.
Hato likely to sign deal in March
He will not put pen to paper immediately, since he can only sign a long-term deal once he turns 18 in March.
But by then, Hato is expected to sign off on a contract that would last for more than three years.
With all that in mind, the report concludes that the chances of Hato staying at Ajax have ‘increased considerably’.
Arsenal are unlikely to lose sight of him and would probably be wise to keep monitoring his development, but they will have to be more patient than they perhaps expected.
Hato has played 26 times this season for Ajax, impressively being ever-present in the first half of the Eredivisie season and even captaining them in a couple of cup games.
He has also earned experience in the Europa League, although Ajax have now dropped into the Conference League, where they will meet Bodo/Glimt in the knockout play-off round.
For the rest of the season, and perhaps for years to come, there should be plenty of opportunities for Hato to keep developing at Ajax.
Should he progress as planned, he might be able to earn a move to the Premier League in the future.
The risk is that other clubs might become aware of what he can offer, leading to Arsenal facing competition for his signature. They will simply have to keep their fingers crossed.
Hato has already gained further international recognition by making his senior debut for the Netherlands in November, although it was only against Gibraltar in a Euro 2024 qualifier, which finished as a 6-0 win.
