Vinicius Jr to Arsenal: Transfer status confirmed as Gunners maintain interest

Arsenal remain interested in Real Madrid attacker Vinicius Junior, keeping alive the mouthwatering possibility of the Brazil international completing a blockbuster move to the Premier League champions.

The Gunners were interested in Vini during the summer, but while they were willing to go all-out to sign him, as FootballTransfers exclusively revealed, the door was shut on that possibility when the forward signed a new deal with the Bernabeu club until 2032 in August.

Things have not run smoothly for Vini since. He has been suspended for four La Liga matches against following his sending off for pulling the hair of Villarreal’s Nathan Saliba, while his form has been disappointing.

To make matters worse, Vini's hopes of reclaiming his starting spot have become complicated. The performances of record signing Yan Diomande have been excellent on the left, while Arda Guler is impressing on the right of Madrid’s attack.

And this has once again put the future of the 26-year-old up in the air.

Arsenal remain in the picture, with El Chiringuito’s Josep Pedrerol announcing that Mikel Arteta’s side still hold an ongoing interest. However, he suggested that the Gunners will need to make at least one notable sacrifice to make the possibility of a blockbuster deal happen.

He explained: “The important thing is that Arsenal likes Vinicius. They like Vinicius. That's the solution. There's a salary limit and Martin Zubimendi’s move could help it happen. It could help Arsenal make an offer for Vinicius.

“And then we have the case of Mikel Merino, who's playing more minutes, but maybe he could also enter that sale to make it easier for a player like Vinicius.”

Pedrerol also outlined the current position of Real Madrid, who are unlikely to green-light the Brazilian’s sale in January – and the player is also not pushing to leave.

“No offer has come to Madrid. Nothing specific has come to Real Madrid,” he added.

“It is also not clear that Madrid would sell Vinicius. We do not know if Vinicius would be in favour of leaving Madrid in June or in January. It does not seem so. Vinicius wants to reverse the situation. Vinicius wants to stay in Madrid.

“But the Arsenal is attentive to Vinicius. That is also the team in which he could perform best.”

Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho, meanwhile, has continued to back the attacker.

Speaking last week, the Portuguese said: “You must always believe in a player's potential. A bad player will always be bad, no matter how hard you try. And a good player will remain good, regardless of how many difficult moments he goes through.

“If it hadn't been Vinicius, but an ordinary player, we would have considered the performance he produced in Athens a good one. He played well, not incredibly well. But because Vinicius is always expected to produce the version of himself that knocked me out of the Champions League last season, we have to keep working on every level.

“There is one thing that is very important to me: he has a good relationship with his team-mates, all of them, without exception. When it comes down to the important decisions, such as deciding who plays, the team must always come before any individual player.”

Mourinho’s actions in the weeks and months ahead promise to be key in Vinicius’ future.