Arsenal have been linked with an interest in Montpellier forward Elye Wahi ahead of the summer transfer window, but French football expert Jonathan Johnson thinks another kind of move might make more sense first.
Writing in his exclusive CaughtOffside column, to be published in full tomorrow at 7am, Johnson explained that, despite apparent interest from the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham, it would probably make sense for Wahi to move to a ‘finishing school’ club first as he doesn’t quite look ready for one of the elite sides in the Premier League.
The France Under-21 international has shown immense potential in Ligue 1 this season, and Johnson has confirmed that there is a lot of growing interest in the player, though it’s possible that he won’t leave the French top flight just yet.
Wahi also doesn’t make much sense as a target for Arsenal right now, says Johnson, as they look like they’re about to let a similar player in Folarin Balogun leave the club, so it’s hard to imagine they’d have much use for another exciting young forward, who in turn surely wouldn’t gain much from moving to the Emirates Stadium as he needs to play regularly.
Elye Wahi celebrates a goal for Montpellier
“Elye Wahi is an interesting player who’s starting to attract a lot of interest after his fine form with Montpellier this season. Still only 20 years of age, the forward has 17 goals and five assists in Ligue 1, and there’s growing interest from clubs across Europe,” Johnson explained.
“German clubs often keep an eye on Ligue 1, with the success of players like Moussa Diaby and Randal Kolo Muani, and Wahi is the latest coming up on their radars. There have also been links with Arsenal, and there was seemingly heavy interest from Tottenham a few months ago, though that’s died down now that the club have fallen out of contention for a Champions League place.
“Wahi is very highly rated and there are clubs in Ligue 1 keeping an eye on him as well to potentially…
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