EXCLUSIVE: Nico Williams made Andrea Berta's top priority at Arsenal

Steve Kay

Updated: 14 Mar 2025 09:57 CDT
4 min read

FootballTransfers understands that Mikel Arteta is pushing hard for Andrea Berta to sign Athletic Club winger Nico Williams.

We are told that Arsenal's manager has made it clear to the incoming sporting director that he ought to focus on securing complete buy-in from Williams as his first order of business.

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Sources with knowledge of the situation have informed us that Arteta is desperate to bring in the Athletic Club winger and wants Berta to utilise his Spanish connections to finally convince the player of a move to the Premier League.

Berta spent 12 years in charge of Atletico Madrid's recruitment first as technical and then as sporting director. The Italian's fluency in Spanish, his wide-reaching relationships within LaLiga and his huge experience made him the top candidate to succeed Edu at Arsenal.

We hear that trying to sway Williams will be Berta's first proper job at Arsenal. He may not be the first incoming of the summer window, but he will certainly require the most attention.

The groundwork for the signings of Martin Zubimendi and Benjamin Sesko has already been laid, so there is a sense that these deals will require less urgency and effort than Williams.

Talks with Zubimendi and Real Sociedad are at an advanced stage and the player has agreed to make the move. Sesko, meanwhile, is the striker target Arsenal have done the most work on.

As we have previously reported, Arsenal are prepared to pay Nico Williams' release clause if they get the approval of the 22-year-old that he is ready to join them. The value of the clause is thought to be in the region of €55 million to €60m.

It is not a fixed fee, rather it is tied to the Consumer Price Index and thus the final sum changes with the rate of inflation. Arsenal could also seek to pay over the odds to get better payment terms as his clause would have to be paid in one lump sum.

Isak and Guimaraes deals unlikely

In recent days, there has been a lot of talk about Arsenal wanting Newcastle midfielder Bruno Guimaraes. It is true that the Brazilian is a player that is admired.

However, Arsenal's previous interest in Guimaraes was driven primarily by Edu. With him no longer at the club, the Gunners are not expected to pursue a summer move. He no longer fits the profile of player Arsenal are looking for.

The North London club want to sign younger players. Sverre Nypan is one midfield option with whom advanced talks have taken place. We understand that Arsenal could sign the Norwegian and potentially another young midfielder to develop alongside him.

Finally, regarding Newcastle striker Alexander Isak, we can once again confirm that Arteta is a massive fan and that he would love to sign him. However, as we previously reported, a summer transfer is not realistic as things stand.

There is an acceptance at Arsenal that Isak will not be attainable given his price and Newcastle's reluctance to sell. Sesko represents better value for money and this is why Edu and Arteta focused primarily on him last year.

Arsenal's admiration for Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins also remains. Indeed, we recently revealed that the Gunners could launch a fresh attempt for the England international.