Arsenal assistant coach Miguel Molina has confirmed that the club tried to sign Vinicius Jr during the summer transfer window.
With the Gunners looking to upgrade their attack and make a marquee signing on the left wing, Vinicius Jr emerged as a shock target.
Arsenal felt the uncertainty over the Brazilian superstar’s contract situation at Real Madrid opened up an opportunity for them to take advantage of.
There was a genuine belief at Arsenal that a blockbuster deal was possible. At one stage, it was felt the move might even be more likely to happen than not.
However, Madrid eventually made an improved contract offer and Vinicius Jr extended his deal at the Bernabeu, as Arsenal missed out on what would have been arguably the biggest signing in the club’s history.
Manager Mikel Arteta has been typically coy when asked about players Arsenal were targeting in the window, but his assistant Molina has been more revealing when asked about the extent of the club's interest in Vinicius Jr.
“Yes, of course," Molina said on the pursuit of Vinicius Jr during an interview on Radio Marca‘s La Tribu programme in Spain.
"Obviously, I can’t stray from the facts, but he [Vinicius Jr] was a name that was on the table, yes.”
Molina joined Arteta's coaching staff in August 2020, when he was only 27 years old.
He has become a key part of the backroom team at the Emirates Stadium and signed a new contract with Arsenal last year.
Molina praised the influence Arteta has had at all levels of the club, emphasising how he has driven the standards with his work ethic.
“He’s the first to arrive, the last to leave. He’s very intense, a super demanding guy,” Molina said.
“His best quality is that he’s able to bring out the best in the people around him, both the players and the staff, because ultimately he’s the greatest example of hard work and quality in that work.
“It’s a team that has a strong sense of what it means to be a team. What camaraderie is, what it means to be a family, understanding that the collective comes before anything else.”
