Arsenal given Anthony Gordon transfer hope following Nico Williams Barcelona blow

Arsenal signing Anthony Gordon from Newcastle United this summer is not impossible as the Gunners scope out alternatives to Barcelona-bound Nico Williams, Charles Watts believes.

The Gunners are one of several sides thought to have been pursuing Williams for the best part of a year, but they will seemingly have to concede defeat in the race to sign the Spain international.

Indeed, Barcelona are now believed to be on the brink of bringing the Athletic Bilbao attacker to Camp Nou, while Bayern Munich appear to be at the head of the queue if his move to La Blaugrana falls through.

At a time where Arsenal are searching for some ingenuity on the left-hand side, Watts has admitted that Williams's imminent switch to Camp Nou is a setback, albeit one that the Gunners should recover from.

“It would be a blow to Mikel Arteta because Arteta really likes Nico Williams," Watts told Sports Mole. "That’s where Arsenal's interest has come from. They just haven't been able to get it over the line. Last season, they weren't able to convince him to leave Spain. And this season, it seems like it's going to be a familiar story when it comes to that.

“I think he's always had his heart set on Barcelona, that was pretty obvious last summer. Didn't get the move he wanted then, and it looks like it's probably going to happen now. I can see why he's going to be doing it. But it is going to be a blow to Arteta, no doubt about it. Arteta wanted Nico Williams; he could see what he could have brought to that left-hand side of the attack.

Watts: 'Williams Barcelona move not a nightmare for Arsenal'

“There are other options, though. I don't think it's a nightmare for Arsenal. Whether it be you hold on and see what happens with Rodrygo, Anthony Gordon at Newcastle, a player that we know Arsenal like. Is there a way you can get him out of Newcastle? We talk about the Premier League experience that Mikel Arteta likes. Anthony Gordon certainly has that. And there seems to be suggestions that that although it would be difficult, it might not be impossible.

“And then there's players like Rafael Leao, who seems to potentially be available if you spend the money. But it's definitely going to be disappointing for Arteta. I think if you went into his office and you saw the list of left-wingers who were going to be on that, I'm pretty sure Nico Williams would have been top.”

As Watts alluded to, Arsenal are not short of alternative targets in the left-wing position, where Newcastle's Gordon has made a habit of haunting the Gunners in previous campaigns.

The 24-year-old scored in both legs of the Magpies' EFL Cup semi-final win over Arteta's men in 2024-25, as well as setting up Alexander Isak's header in their 1-0 Premier League home success and netting the only goal in an identical victory at St James' Park in 2023.

The ex-Everton man did not hit the same heights overall in 2024-25 as he did in 2023-24, though, coming up with six goals and six assists following intense speculation surrounding a potential move to Liverpool throughout Euro 2024.

Gordon ended up signing a new Newcastle deal last October, but the Liverpool links have re-emerged, as it has been claimed that the Reds are ready to pay a whopping £100m to bring him back to Anfield.

Watts: 'Difficult but not impossible for Arsenal to sign Gordon'

Watts cannot envisage Arsenal doing the same, but he believes that the 24-year-old joining the Gunners this summer is not an impossible scenario.

“I don't think there's any chance they pay £100m for Anthony Gordon," he added. "He's worth paying good money for. He's a very, very good player, comes with Premier League experience, which obviously is a plus. You don't have that question mark about, will he be able to handle it over here? We know he can, he's still young as well. You would have to spend big money to get him out of Newcastle, the fact they're in the Champions League, they're not under any constraints to sell, they could quite happily hold on to him.

“He’s obviously signed a contract fairly recently, he was doing really well, stayed last summer. Liverpool were interested in him then, there was talk that he was quite swayed by that, but it didn't happen. He signed the new contract, but then he didn't have the best end to the season. There's a lot of people questioning his performances and whether maybe his heart was really in it

“I'm not saying that Arsenal are definitely going to go for him, but I think it's definitely one that as the summer progresses, it might be something that we see begin to stir a little bit, whether it's Arsenal or Liverpool or anyone else. I'm just not 100% convinced that he'll definitely be a Newcastle player at the end of the summer.”

Nevertheless, Arsenal are yet to be credibly linked with a concrete move for Gordon this summer; their chief alternatives are said to be the likes of AC Milan's Rafael Leao, Brighton & Hove Albion's Kaoru Mitoma and Real Madrid's Rodrygo.

The latter is believed to be keen to stay at the Bernabeu, though, meaning that Arsenal could swerve and target a second attacker in Xabi Alonso's ranks.

> Click here to listen to the full discussion on Arsenal's links to Williams and Gordon

Written by
Ben Knapton