Arsenal are reportedly eyeing a £100million move for Douglas Luiz six years after Pep Guardiola attempted to persuade the Home Office to grant the Brazilian a visa. Luiz has been one of the stars of the Premier League season, helping to guide Aston Villa to third.
Villa were able to sign Luiz from Manchester City in 2019 after he failed to earn a work permit with Guardiola’s side. At the time, immigration laws meant that because he had been signed by City from Vasco da Gama and had no international experience, he was not eligible to play in the UK.
A £15m payment to City from Villa meant that he was subsequently able to successfully apply for a work permit. According to The Athletic, Guardiola was so desperate to keep Luiz at the Etihad Stadium that he sent videos of the midfielder’s performances to the Home Office.
The point of the exercise was to convince the authorities that Luiz was capable of being a success and should therefore be granted special dispensation. Guardiola’s unorthodox move ultimately failed.
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Luiz has been one of the Villans’ best players over the last four years. He finally earned a senior debut with Brazil 2019 and has made 11 appearances in total for the South Americans.
According to the Daily Mail, Arsenal are one of the clubs interested in signing Luiz but face a potential £100m bill. The Gunners failed with a £25m move in the summer of 2022 and Villa believe their valuation is justified by recent deals that have exceeded £100m, including Arsenal’s Declan Rice and Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo.
Villa boss Unai Emery is desperate to keep Luiz beyond the January transfer window. The Spaniard said earlier this month: “He’s playing very good. He’s improved a lot, his commitment is amazing.
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“I am very happy with him and I want to keep him of course. I think he’s happy with us. He’s coming on with his national team. And his performance like today was amazing. I want him.”
Downplaying a departure in the winter window, Luiz said of his own future: “I am very happy to hear the stories but I am here at Aston Villa. My focus is totally here.
“I don’t spend a lot of time looking at the stories. I see them, but I don’t focus on that and I’m not looking at it every day. My head is here at Aston Villa.”
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