Arsenal Targets Antonio Nusa for Summer Rebuild
Arsenal’s summer rebuild on the flanks is gathering pace, and Mikel Arteta has fixed his gaze firmly on one of Europe’s most exciting young wingers: Antonio Nusa.
Leandro Trossard’s departure to Besiktas has ripped a proven, versatile option out of Arsenal’s left side. It has also stripped away a layer of security. Behind Gabriel Martinelli, the cupboard on that flank suddenly looks bare. For a club defending a Premier League title and preparing for another season on multiple fronts, that’s not a risk Arteta is willing to take.
So Arsenal are moving. Aggressively.
Arsenal step into Nusa race
According to emerging reports, the Premier League champions are readying an opening bid of around €40 million (£34 million) for RB Leipzig’s Nusa, a figure that underlines both their intent and the winger’s rapid rise.
The 21-year-old has just come off a breakout 2026 World Cup, where he drove Norway into the quarter-finals and lit up the tournament with a stunning solo goal against Ivory Coast. It wasn’t just a highlight reel moment; it was a statement. A fearless wide player, on the biggest stage, taking defenders apart and backing himself when it mattered.
That kind of performance doesn’t go unnoticed. Leipzig know exactly what they have, and that’s where Arsenal hit their first major obstacle. The Bundesliga side are understood to value Nusa closer to €60 million (£52 million). A €20 million gap is not a minor detail in any negotiation, even for a club with Arsenal’s recent spending power.
And they’re not alone at the table.
Liverpool, still recalibrating their own attacking options, have been strongly linked with Nusa as well. They see him as a more attainable target than Yan Diomande after their move for Diomande’s Leipzig teammate fell apart. For Arsenal, that means this is not just a recruitment decision. It’s a straight fight with another heavyweight for one of the most coveted young wide forwards on the market.
A different weapon for Arteta
Arteta’s need on the left is clear. With Trossard gone, Martinelli stands as the only established, natural left winger in the squad. One injury, one dip in form, and the balance of Arsenal’s attack tilts dangerously.
Nusa offers something different to both. He is rawer, yes, but his tools are obvious: explosive acceleration, direct dribbling, and a constant urge to isolate and attack his full-back one-on-one. He stretches games. He forces defenders to turn and run. For a side that often faces low blocks and packed penalty areas, that kind of chaos can be priceless.
At just 21, he also fits the club’s broader strategy. Arsenal have built a title-winning side around players whose best years are still ahead of them. Nusa would walk straight into that timeline, with room to grow under a coach who has shown he can refine young attackers without blunting their edge.
Yet the plan on the left does not stop with him.
Why Nusa doesn’t end the Morgan Rogers chase
Even if Arsenal land Nusa, the pursuit of Morgan Rogers should continue. That is the calculation inside the club’s recruitment thinking: this isn’t an either-or decision. It’s a chance to reshape an entire flank.
Rogers, coming off an impressive spell with Aston Villa, brings something Nusa cannot yet match – Premier League experience and a broader positional palette. He can operate off the left, but he is equally comfortable drifting inside, linking play behind the striker, and knitting attacks together in central pockets.
In a perfect scenario for Arsenal, Rogers arrives as a near-immediate starter, a player ready to slot into the first XI and raise its technical ceiling. Nusa, by contrast, would start as fierce competition for Martinelli, pushing the Brazilian while being groomed to evolve into one of Europe’s most dangerous wide forwards.
That is the kind of depth champions carry.
Arteta knows the demands of another title defence, deep Champions League ambitions, and domestic cups will test every corner of his squad. Two high-quality, left-sided attackers, each with a different profile, would not be a luxury. It would be the foundation of a sustainable assault on every competition Arsenal enter.
The market is moving, rivals are circling, and the price for elite wide talent is only heading in one direction. Arsenal now have a choice to make: push hard, pay up, and reshape their left flank for years – or risk watching a key piece of their future line up in someone else’s colours.
