- 6 hours ago
Man Utd handed massive Arsenal boost in pursuit of Leicester promotion hero
Arsenal likely won't move for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall this summer despite previous interest, according to a report.
The Leicester City star is coming off a stunning promotion season under new Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca. The Italian gave the Foxes homegrown licence to get involved in the attack and the 25-year-old paid this trust back with a whopping 12 goals and 15 assists.
These impressive numbers have naturally attracted interest from elsewhere. In January, Brighton had a bid north of €20 million rejected out of hand by Leicester, with the then-Championship side offended by the Seagulls' low valuation of the midfielder.
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The Foxes had been confident of being able to keep the academy graduate after winning the second division, but their Financial Fair Play issues and the departure of Maresca have dented that confidence significantly.
Indeed, journalist Ben Jacobs recently revealed that a departure of Dewsbury-Hall is a concrete possibility this summer despite the player's assertions to the contrary. Brighton remain keen on him, but more intriguingly, Man Utd were also mentioned as a potential destination.
Arsenal not keen
Now, Jacobs has provided an update on the situation. Arsenal were previously also credited with an interest in Dewsbury-Hall, but the journalist is not so sure that an attack-minded midfielder is on the Gunners' agenda this summer.
Arsenal are looking for a midfielder but haven't yet fully decided whether to pursue a defensive player so as to unleash Declan Rice as a number eight or whether to sign an eight and use the England international as a six. Either way, Dewsbury-Hall does not fit the profile of player the north London giants are looking for.
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“Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall really excelled when bombing forwards as a high-octane number eight under Enzo Maresca," Jacobs told GIVEMESPORT, "but that may not be the kind of profile in the end that Arsenal go for. And there's no indication yet that they've moved to try and advance things with Leicester City.”