Premier League champions Manchester City and last season’s runners up Arsenal are among the sides keeping tabs on World Cup winning defender Nahuel Molina as he seeks an exit from Atletico Madrid, according to reports.
Molina started six of the seven games for Argentina at the World Cup, and has been a regular in Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid side since his arrival in 2022.
The 25-year-old fullback appeared 33 times in the Spanish top flight in his debut season for the Rojablanco, scoring four times in the process and he has scored on his only outing in La Liga so far this season.
Atletico remain keen to keep the fullback, who is under contract until 2027. However, Spanish outlet OKFichajes report that they will face a fight to do so.
That Messi & Molina link-up 🤩
🥳 Happy birthday, Nahuel! #FIFAWorldCup | @AFASeleccionENpic.twitter.com/v12sz3U596
— Azeem Ullah | عظیم اللہ (@engineer151012) September 5, 2023
That is because a trio of Spanish coaches are keen to sign him, with Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta leading the chase for the fullback and Aston Villa boss Unai Emery also following closely.
This is thanks to the uncertainty surrounding his release clause, which various outlets have placed between 30m and 70m euros, and some outlets have even suggested could be as high as 90m euros.
However, while it exists, the Premier League clubs reportedly continue to circle, and a move ‘is not ruled out’.
Where would Molina fit?
It is hard to see where Molina would fit in at Arsenal, with the club already boasting Takehiro Tomiyasu, Ben White and the injured Jurrien Timber as potential options at right back.
Though Timber was ruled out for the season last month, the Gunners made no move to replace him in the latter stages of the summer transfer window, suggesting that they do not want to add another right-back in the longer term unless there is a departure.
Manchester City may be more realistic, with Kyle Walker set to sign a new contract but now heading into his twilight years, but any move would likely mean the end for highly rated academy talent Rico Lewis, who only signed a new deal at the Etihad over the summer.
