The 23-year-old had another difficult season under manager Mikel Arteta. He picked up a knee injury before the turn of the year and continued to remain a regular on the bench on his return.
Smith Rowe was restricted to just 33 minutes during the final two months of the Premier League campaign. We won’t be surprised if he decides to pursue a new challenge this summer.
Corriere dello Sport (page 9) today report that Smith Rowe is on the radar of Napoli. The Serie A outfit are evaluating him as they look to sign a new attacking midfielder ahead of next season.
The Gunners are also toying with the possibility of signing Victor Osimhen. The Nigerian is also attracting interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Saudi clubs, but the Premier League is his first objective.
Arsenal could use Smith Rowe as a makeweight in Osimhen deal
The London giants are expected to sign a marquee striker in the coming weeks. Gianluca Di Marzio recently revealed that the club could choose between Benjamin Sesko and Osimhen.
We would personally prefer Sesko due to his high potential and better fitness record, but the Gunners could be tempted to land Osimhen if Napoli open the door for a player-plus-cash deal.
The Nigerian forward missed 10 games with injuries last term but still managed 17 goals and four assists from 2,474 minutes.
Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis is likely to accept a fee lesser than the £111 million release clause in Osimhen’s contract, but Arsenal could use Smith Rowe as a makeweight to lower the price further.
The Gunners will obviously not want to sell their club graduate on the cheap. In our opinion, they could demand at least £30m for him despite his lack of first-team minutes in the last two years.
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