From ‘future of Arsenal’s midfield’ to €3m outcast: The downfall of William Carvalho

Robin Bairner

10 Apr 2024 12:30 BST
6 min read

William Carvalho, Arsenal, 2023/24 — © IMAGO

William Carvalho was once described as the future of Arsenal’s midfield at the height of the mania that persistently linked him with a transfer to the Premier League in the middle of the 2010s.

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Carvalho burst onto the scene with Sporting CP, but despite going on to win 80 caps for Portugal, has not made it to the Premier League. And at 32, he probably will never.

Manchester United, Chelsea and Juventus were all linked with the new sensation at that time, yet it was Arsenal who enjoyed the most persistent rumours.

The Gunners at that time were crying out for a midfield enforcer while Carvalho’s love of the club – he wears Thierry Henry’s No.14 shirt in a homage to the forward and idolised Patrick Vieira – only help fan the flames. He was touted as the future of the Emirates club.

There were even reports of a concrete offer on Deadline Day in 2013. A cash-plus-Joel Campbell deal was mooted for a player who was reckoned to be worth in the region of €40 million.

“I definitely thought he would join a really big club,” Jefferson, Sporting CP’s left-back at the time told The Athletic.

“He brought real quality to the midfield, which spread confidence to the defence behind him. We knew we could pass to him without fear, knowing that he would not lose the ball. He was always demanding possession, always passing forward, trying to get us playing. He added a lot to the team.”

“He had ability on the ball, understood positioning, was good in and out of possession. As long as he maintained his focus and form, I was convinced he would go on to play for a club even bigger than Sporting — that he’d take that next step in his career.”

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Carvalho fails to kick on

Carvalho never really did. The rumours persisted but the transfer never arrived that matched his buyout clause of €45m, which Sporting were determined to stick to.

“There was West Ham, Sevilla. Leicester also asked. Aston Villa… William had a lot of admirers in England, but no club matched the price we were asking for,” Andre Geraldes, sporting director of the club, said.

Ultimately a €16m move to Real Betis arrived in 2018 amid internal turmoil in Lisbon that culminated with masked supporters invading the training ground.

He has been unable to fulfil his potential in LaLiga, though. Carvalho’s performances have been underwhelming and now Betis are desperate to offload him.

Besiktas and Botafogo have both been interested but his salary demands are too great.

As such, his asking price has been slashed by Betis. Sporting director Manu Fajardo is demanding just €3m for a player once reckoned to be worth 15 times that figure, according to TodoFichajes.

Carvalho has gone from being a player Premier League teams couldn’t get enough of to one nobody wants. His story is set to be one of the great unfulfilled potential tales in the modern game.