Arsenal failed to sign any players during the January transfer window and despite a mightily impressive 5-1 win over Manchester City, the empty deadline day followed up with elimination in the Carabao Cup by Newcastle has soured the mood. Unsurprisingly, plenty of misconceptions have since grown from the rubble of the first month of 2025.
The idea that Arsenal moved too late for Ollie Watkins, for example, or that they offered an amount that Aston Villa would never entertain, is simply not the case.
What Arsenal did offer was considered a very fair and reasonable proposal and stood among the highest ever made for a Premier League player by a fellow English top-flight club for someone in Watkins’ age bracket. Sadly it was not enough to change the position of Unai Emery’s side.
Despite initial reports suggesting the offer was £60million, this was in fact only in the ballpark that Villa were looking for to begin serious conversations over a move. It was a figure Arsenal felt was too high and, therefore, did not return with a second offer, preferring instead to wait until the summer to make a move for another of their targets such as Benjamin Sesko.
