Emile Smith Rowe puts his arm round Reiss Nelson after Arsenal win
Arsenal are reportedly willing to let Reiss Nelson leave the club on loan in January, and some Premier League clubs are lining up to take him.
Some of the Gunners’ lesser seen attackers might feel hard done by given their lack of minutes at the moment. Indeed, the regulars aren’t doing a great job, with Arsenal failing to win their last three games, and scoring just twice during those.
The likes of Emile Smith Rowe and Nelson have hardly been given a sniff.
Their combined minutes total in the league this season only just passes 200.
In Nelson’s case, that’s somewhat confusing, given Charles Watts recently told TEAMtalk that Arteta “didn’t want to lose him” amid AC Milan interest recently as he “was very impressed” by the winger last season, and opted to give him a new deal.
If the manager was impressed last season, that’s not reflected in Nelson’s minutes in the current campaign.
And just a few months after Arteta turned the forward’s head back to Arsenal when he was edging towards Milan, it looks like he’s ready to let him go.
Indeed, Football Insider reports Arsenal are ‘willing to let’ Nelson depart in January.
Prem clubs line up for Nelson loan
While that’ll only be on loan, it does beg the question why Arteta was so desperate not to lose him, given he clearly doesn’t hold the importance it was suggested he did.
It’s stressed that the Gunners ‘do not want to lose Nelson permanently’.
But their openness to let him depart on loan comes ‘amid interest from Premier League clubs’.
It’s not clear which clubs want him, or how many, as no names are mentioned.
European switch also an option
If Nelson doesn’t move within the Premier League, he might get a move to the continent.
Indeed, some ‘top European clubs’ are also said to be keen on him as well as those in England.
The winger has played for both Hoffenheim and Feyenoord for short periods previously.
But given those spells have not afforded him a consistent role back at Arsenal, a Premier League switch might seen as more useful for Nelson this time.
He’s only ever played 43 times in the Premier League despite his debut coming in the 2017/18 campaign, so he could finally get some much-needed experience which might serve him well when he returns to the Emirates.
