Former Arsenal manager Unai Emery has given his former club a boost with the admission Yeremy Pino will be allowed to leave for the right price.
Teenage forward Pino has been attracting the interest of a number of clubs, after scoring 14 times across the last two seasons. The youngster has also forced his way into the Spain senior setup, scoring his first international goal for La Roja in March.
Villarreal are in need of funds after failing to qualify for the 2022-23 Champions League, and the collapse of an exit for Pau Torres means Pino could end up being the one to leave. Emery's side reached the last four of the Champions League last season, losing to Liverpool on aggregate, a difficult finish to the domestic season saw them finish seventh in La Liga.
“If an offer arrives for players like Yeremy Pino, then he will have to leave," Emery said ahead of Villarreal's league opener at Valladolid, as reported by The Sun. “We have a responsibility with the club. It is what it is.”
In addition to Torres and Pino, last season's top scorer Arnaut Danjuma had been attracting attention over the summer. West Ham United were among those linked with the Dutch international, but have instead moved for Gianluca Scamacca.
Arsenal are believed to value Pino in the region of £33m, though a bid of just over double that would activate the 19-year-old's release clause. According to AS, Arsenal's valuation could be enough to tempt the Spanish club into a sale.
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Pino has been with Villarreal since the age of 14, joining from his hometown club Las Palmas. He made his first team debut in October 2020, two days after his 18th birthday, and scored his first senior goal one week later.
The forward was also part of the Villarreal side which eliminated Arsenal from the 2020-21 Europa League at the semi-final stage, coming off the bench in the second leg in north London. He has previously spoken of his admiration for Man Utd star Cristiano Ronaldo, and Arsenal supporters will hope he can make a similar impact on the pitch if a move does go through.
“He won me over with his mentality and sacrifice," Pino recently told Gazzetta (via Sport Witness ). A player who might not be a pure talent, but who, based on work, perseverance and effort, gets to where he wants to.
"And then he comes from Madeira, an island like Gran Canaria, and looking at him, I also recognised myself in emigration, suffering, difficulties.
“For me, he was a point of reference for everything. Today, the thing that strikes me most about him is his intact ambition: he is 37 and continues to fight and work harder than anyone to keep winning."
