Arsenal transfer target admits admiration for 'great' Arteta

Suraj Radia

• 25 Apr 2023 17:14 BST
• 2 min read

Real Valladolid wonderkid Ivan Fresneda has hinted at his preferred destination for a transfer after admitting his respect for Mikel Arteta, having been chased by Arsenal in January.

Fresneda is regarded as one of the biggest defensive prospects in world football after enjoying a breakout season at right back for Valladolid in La Liga.

The 18-year-old has impressed in 14 starts this season and was linked with a €20 million move to the Gunners as well as Borussia Dortmund in January, however he opted to stay with Valladollid until the end of the season and has insisted he is happy at the club.

PROFILE: Who is Ivan Fresneda, the wonderkid right-back wanted by Arsenal?

“The fans have been very supportive from the moment I made my debut and they’ve been asking me to stay,” Fresneda told The Athletic. “My agent keeps me very much on the sidelines

“I don’t really like to look at what a journalist might have written, but I’ve lived everything with a lot of emotion. I’m very grateful to the club, to the previous manager, and I’m trying to handle it as naturally as possible.

“I’m very young, I have to go step by step, not go backwards. Being the age I am, you have to keep improving and I’m doing that at Valladolid. Everyone would like to go to the best teams in the world and that is one of my ambitions, of course.”

Arteta is a ‘great coach’ admits Fresneda

Fresneda was speaking about his style of play and how he prefers to attack as a wing back while also ‘suffering’ in defence and improving his one-on-one marking.

RACE: Premier League rivals join Arsenal in chase for Fresneda

The teenager was coy when questioned about whether he would suit Arteta’s playstyle, saying: “I like Arteta a lot because I think he’s a great coach; I follow the European leagues and I think the work he’s doing with his club is fantastic.”

“It’s not a subject I talked a lot about with colleagues,” he added. “It was something that was taken very normally and we kept playing and kept enjoying it.

“I’m talking to you from the player’s perspective, not the board, the club or the fans, but it’s a good thing for Valladolid. You don’t do well if the team is not at a high level. As everyone knows, in the end there was no offer in the winter and I can’t tell you (how they would take a future sale at Valladolid).”