Arsenal have initiated conversations with Hearts for their teenage striker James Wilson on an initial loan deal on deadline day.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Arsenal have made contact with Hearts for the signing of James Wilson on an initial loan deal. The teenage striker is not seen as someone to fill in a gap in the first team, but a loan deal could be designed for a future move to the club, possibly in the summer.
Arsenal were rocked by a serious injury to Mikel Merino on Sunday when it was revealed that the Spaniard could miss the remainder of the season or most of what is left. David Ornstein indicated that Arsenal could enter the market on deadline day for a loan replacement, although their latest link is rather confusing.
Earlier reports on Monday stated that Arsenal have failed with an approach for Sandro Tonali, as such a move would make sense to fill the gap left by Merino. However, they are now angling for a move for a new striker despite having plenty of options in the centre-forward position at the moment.
The fitness of Viktor Gyokeres, Kai Havertz, and Gabriel Jesus remained intact, which does make the need for a new striker pointless. However, they are in the market for a young prodigy to come in and develop with the Under-21s before staking a claim for a first-team position.
Arsenal have seen a bid for Igor Tyjon turned down, which may have prompted them to go a different route by targeting a move for Hearts teenager James Wilson. The one-cap Scottish international has not been playing regularly, as the Gunners have opened discussions to take the striker on an initial loan, which might include a buy option at the end of it.
Why are Arsenal targeting James Wilson?
The idea to pursue the 18-year-old Scottish wonderkid might have come from their failure to land Tyjor or any other young striker recently. The fact that Arsenal are only keen on a loan spell speaks volumes about what they seek, as Wilson could be brought in on loan to gauge his talent first-hand before deciding in the summer.
Such a move makes sense, as Hearts are probably keen to let the striker leave on loan, as he is not seen as a key part of their first team plans at the moment. At least four or five senior strikers are ahead in the pecking order to Wilson, as he could seek a new environment, such as Arsenal, to further improve his talent.
