José Mourinho has no intention of sanctioning a summer move for Vinícius Júnior to Arsenal, The Telegraph reports. The returning Real Madrid manager has made it clear to the club's hierarchy that he does not want to lose any of his most important players under any circumstances.
Arsenal's interest in the 26-year-old Brazilian is serious, although the two clubs have not yet held talks over a possible transfer. At the Emirates Stadium, Vinícius is viewed as the dream option on the left wing, an area where manager Mikel Arteta has been looking for a new star for years.
His contract situation is adding to the uncertainty in Madrid. Vinícius's current deal runs until the summer of 2027 and talks over an extension have so far made barely any progress, which means Real must consider a sale if no agreement is reached in order to avoid losing him on a free a year later.
For Arsenal, landing Vinícius would be an unprecedented coup. The winger has won the Champions League twice with Real Madrid and has scored more than 20 goals in all competitions in each of the past five seasons.
That move would still bring huge financial obstacles for Arsenal. Vinícius reportedly earns around €470,000 per week and would immediately become the club's highest-paid player, while the London side also want to hand new contracts to Declan Rice and Arteta.
Arsenal signed Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge for €40 million this summer and brought in free-agent goalkeeper Illan Meslier. They also missed out on Morgan Rogers, who chose Chelsea at the last moment, while Leandro Trossard has now left for Besiktas and further sales are deemed necessary.
Such a deal would presumably force Arsenal to completely revise their transfer strategy and potentially abandon other targets, such as Bruno Guimarães (Newcastle United) and Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa).