Andrea Berta at Arsenal’s game against Fulham at the Emirates Stadium (Photo by Justin Setterfield, Clive Rose/Getty Images)
Arsenal director Andrea Berta reportedly left a meeting with Nico Williams’ representatives with the feeling that his club are in pole position to sign the Athletic Bilbao winger.
Williams has shone in La Liga and looks likely to be a man in demand if and when he eventually decides to leave Athletic Club.
Arsenal seem to have a long-standing interest in the Spain international, and Berta looks to have just had a positive meeting to put the Gunners in a strong position.
That’s according to TBR Football, with the report explaining that Arsenal have put in a lot of leg work to move to the front of the queue for Williams’ signature and convince him about their project.
Has Nico Williams been won over to Arsenal transfer?
Berta has only recently been appointed to this important role at the Emirates Stadium, but he brings a lot of experience with him after a successful spell at Atletico Madrid.
It seems the Italian has made a strong start, with Williams clearly a priority target for Arsenal for the upcoming summer window.
According to additional info from the Mirror’s John Cross, the talented 22-year-old could have significant wage demands that make a transfer an issue, however.
Arsenal’s long-standing interest in Nico Williams has always been an issue over his contract at Athletic Bilbao… hard for any club to match/better it. That hasn’t changed so if Andrea Berta can pull that one off…
— John Cross (@johncrossmirror) April 3, 2025
Even if Williams is tempted by Arsenal, it might be that the club will have to fork out very significant money and perhaps risk breaking their wage structure to land the player.
Either that, or Williams himself might need to be willing to adjust his expectations a little, so it will be interesting to see how this potential back and forth goes.
Arsenal might need to explore alternatives as well, however, with TBR Football’s report also mentioning names like Mohammed Kudus and Leroy Sane being considered by the north London giants.
