Arsenal could have signed winger for £11m in 2022, he's now been named Man of the Match vs Real Madrid

Today at 06:15 AM

Ever since Mikel Arteta arrived at Arsenal, it has been well documented that a few targets have slipped through the net.

Firstly, Arsenal tried to sign Mykhailo Mudryk from Shakhtar Donetsk before Chelsea swooped in and stole the Ukraine international in an £88m deal.

Then, Arsenal wanted to sign Benjamin Sesko during the summer transfer window just gone, although the Slovenia international opted to stay with RB Leipzig.

In truth, these two had already blossomed into expensive talents when Arsenal came calling, but there is another gem Mikel Arteta could have signed for just £11m who is now becoming a superstar.

Arsenal will regret ignoring £11m chance to sign Edon Zhegrova

A story from the Sunday Mirror back in April 2022 claimed that Arsenal were looking at Lille wonderkid Edon Zhegrova – and a deal could be done for £11m.

However, the Gunners ended up signing Fabio Vieira from FC Porto in a £34m deal, while also adding Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko to the squad that summer.

Now, Arteta and Edu Gaspar will be kicking themselves, as Zhegrova has just been named Man of the Match in Lille’s 1-0 UEFA Champions League win over Real Madrid.

The Kosovo international was instrumental in a historic victory for Lille on Wednesday night, firing a freekick into the hand of Eduardo Camavinga to allow Jonathan David – a target for Newcastle – to score the winner from the penalty spot.

Zhegrova should have grabbed an assist for the Canada international before that moment after floating a delightful cross to the back stick, where Andriy Lunin – who Arsenal looked at over the summer – had to make a fine double save.

The Lille No.23 also came close to making it 2-0 himself with a whipped effort, which flew narrowly beyond Lunin’s post.

Zhegrova would have been ideal Bukayo Saka competition for Mikel Arteta

The 25-year-old is a left footed winger who loves to cut inside from the right flank, something he did to great effect against Real Madrid.

That is exactly how Bukayo Saka plays the game, so had Edu decided to sign Zhegrova in 2022, Arsenal would have two incredible options to call upon in that position.

Unfortunately, Arsenal never took advantage of this £11m opportunity at the time, and the man from Herford is now turning into a superstar at Lille – rubbing salt in the wounds for the Gunners.