'Arsenal were after him': Club director says Gunners wanted to sign 13-goal international forward who 'wins matches'

Arsenal are likely to be busy in the coming weeks as Edu and Mikel Arteta look to finally get some signings over the line.

The Gunners have improved over the past few years, becoming regular Premier League title challengers after years outside of the top four.

Next season, Arsenal will want to get the job done and finally win the title for the first time since 2004.

The Gunners have been linked with many top players in recent months and are said to be in talks with Bologna over Riccardo Calafiori.

However, some targets will invariably slip through the net.

For instance, the director of a Turkish club has now claimed that Arsenal were after a player who has since joined Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce.

READ MORE: Eric Cantona says Arsenal have a truly ‘great’ talent in their ranks

Arsenal were after Oguz Aydin

The player in question is Oguz Aydin, who completed a £5million move from Alanyaspor to Fenerbahce earlier this week, as per Transfermarkt.

Aydin came through the ranks at Bucaspor before joining Alanyaspor in 2021 and, three years on, he has joined one of Turkey’s biggest clubs.

Cihan Aktas, the president of Bucaspor, spoke to Hurriyet about Aydin’s move and how the Gunners were among the clubs eyeing the Alanyaspor ace.

“Oguz is a player who takes the stage at unexpected moments and wins matches,” said Aktas.

“Two Italian clubs and Arsenal were after him. Galatasaray also wanted him, but when Ali Koc stepped in, he became a Fenerbahce player.”

Arsenal likely to keep tabs on Aydin

It’s good to hear that Arsenal have cast their net out far and wide in terms of scouting, and Aydin certainly looked like a decent talent for them to snap up.

The 23-year-old has gone from strength to strength in recent years, registering 13 goals for his club last season and winning his maiden cap this year.

That said, maybe Aydin might’ve been too raw for Arsenal at present.

When the likes of Emile Smith Rowe struggle to get into the XI, then this may have been the case for Aydin too, as he’s still relatively unproven at the highest level.

The Gunners will surely be keeping tabs on how he gets on at Fenerbahce and they may well consider a move in the coming years.

READ MORE: Insider claims Arsenal have prepared big presentation to convince ‘world class’ player to join