Almost Agreed! Agent confirms Arsenal’s interest in 21-goal hero

The agent of winger Charles De Ketelaere has disclosed that North London giant Arsenal were one of a number of clubs interested in the player.

The Belgian attracted several sides across Europe after a great season at Jupiler Pro League, where he accumulated 21 goal contributions from 33 games.

The players representative has now claimed that the Gunners were keen in signing the 21-year-old along with the likes of Leeds, Barcelona and West Ham United.

However, the agent says Arsenal never followed-up their keen interest with an offer and De Ketelaere ended up joining Milan in a £29m deal after they made it clear they were serious about luring him to the San Siro.

Speaking to HLN, agent Tom De Mul said:

“West Ham, Newcastle, Arsenal have all followed Charles but they never pushed through. Even Barcelona followed him for a long time. But I didn’t think that was the right step,”

“Financially, Leeds would have been the best option. For Club Brugge, for Charles, for us. But Charles wanted to wait a little longer. When Charles felt that Milan were 100 percent serious things started to turn.”