Rafael Leao would bring "absolutely everything" to Arsenal, according to journalist Charles Watts, but he would still prefer the Gunners to go after Real Madrid's Rodrygo instead.
A new left-winger is high on sporting director Andrea Berta's shortlist this summer, and it was claimed a few days ago that the Italian had made direct contact with AC Milan to explore the conditions of a deal surrounding Leao.
The Portugal international has seemingly been identified as an alternative to Rodrygo, another player who has caught Arsenal's eye but one that would be difficult to bring to the Emirates due to the financial cost of the operation.
Watts recently implored Arsenal to pay over the odds for Rodrygo if a deal was there to be done, but when asked by Sports Mole whether Leao fell into the same bracket, he explained why the Real Madrid man may still be the better option.
"I don't know if he's quite in that same category," he said. "I'm sure I'm going to have people screaming at the screens disagreeing with me!
"I really like Rafael Leao. He's one of those players, you watch him and you think 'wow, why are you not better than people think you are? Why are you not held quite in such a high regard as some of the other top wingers in the world?'
"He's got absolutely everything. When you watch him, he just seems to do stuff week in week out for Milan. But then you talk to people who watch more Leao than I do, and there are inconsistencies there.
Watts 'leaning towards' Rodrygo due to Leao inconsistencies
"But he's a player who would absolutely get you on your feet. He's got all the ingredients to be an absolute superstar. So I'm not going to sit here and turn my nose up at Rafael Leao, because I think he's a fabulous player.
"But if I had a choice between the two right now, I think I'd still lean towards Rodrygo. I wouldn't be saying no to either of them, but there's the inconsistent factor with Leao that I have Rodrygo just ahead of him in that pecking order."
Leao averaged a goal or assist every other match for Milan in the 2024-25 campaign, contributing 12 goals and 13 assists from 50 games across all competitions, but his €175m (£146.7m) release clause could also prove problematic.
The 25-year-old is just one of a handful of wingers on Berta's shortlist, though, and it has also been reported that Brighton & Hove Albion's Kaoru Mitoma is being monitored by the Premier League's runners-up.
The Japan international is about to enter the last two years of his contract at the Amex Stadium and struggled for starts towards the end of the 2024-25 season, as his final five Premier League appearances of the campaign all came as a substitute.
Brighton and Arsenal negotiated deals for Ben White and Leandro Trossard in the past, but the two clubs' relationship supposedly soured in 2023, when the Gunners tried and failed to snare Moises Caicedo away from the Amex.
As a result, Watts can envisage Brighton driving an extremely hard bargain for a player who has potentially already peaked, and he cautioned Arsenal against making a move, adding: "The thing with Mitoma, he's 28, which might put Arsenal off a little bit.
'Mitoma boat may have sailed for Arsenal'
© Imago
And this is Brighton we're talking about; they do not do things on the cheap. If they're going to sell a player, they're going to really try and squeeze as much money as they possibly can.
"Mitoma is a fantastic player, unbelievable. Arsenal fans know more than most the damage that he can do. He's always good against Arsenal. You rarely see Ben White given a tougher game than when he comes up against Mitoma.
"He scores some quality goals, his work ethic, he's perfectly suited to what Mikel Arteta would want. But the talk about [Viktor] Gyokeres over [Benjamin] Sesko is always about Gyokeres is 27, no sell-on value. If you're investing between £60m and £80m on Mitoma, which you'd think is what Brighton would want, there's no sell-on value.
"I just feel like the boat might have sailed already when it comes to Mitoma. If he does leave Brighton, it wouldn't surprise me if he goes outside of the Premier League.
"But same as Leao, he's a hell of a player, and it's not my money, so I'm not overly bothered about it! It's Arsenal's money, and if that's the way they wish to spend it, then, so be it. He'd be a fantastic addition, but I don't see that one happening."
Athletic Bilbao's Nico Williams remains on Arsenal's radar too, but talk of the Euro 2024 winner potentially joining the Gunners has gone quiet in recent days, although they may have been handed a boost by a Barcelona chief's transfer admission.
Press play on the video above to listen to the full discussion about Leao, Mitoma and the latest on Arsenal's striker search.
Ben Knapton
