Arsenal offer 23-year-old to Jose Mourinho’s Roma after Mikel Arteta refuses to consider him in his plans: Reports

Arsenal have made Belgian midfielder Albert Sambi Lokonga available for transfer. According to Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport, the Gunners are looking to offload the player, with Serie A side AS Roma arising as a possible destination for the player.

The report claims that manager Mikel Arteta does not consider Lokonga to be in his plans and the Gunners are happy to sell the 23-year-old.

Lokonga joined Arsenal two seasons ago and enjoyed a bright start to his career. Injuries to Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey meant that the Belgian received the opportunity to establish himself as a regular for the team.

However, following a series of poor performances and public comments about not getting playing time, he was loaned to Crystal Palace. His performances at Selhurst Park were underwhelming too, thus confirming the Gunners' decision to sell the player.

The Sun reported earlier that Burnley were interested in the player. Lokonga featured under Vincent Kompany at Belgian side RSC Anderlecht and the Clarets were open to a reunion at Turf Moor. However, the report claimed that the newly promoted side were only open to a loan deal. RC Strasbourg, where former Palace manager Patrick Vieira has been appointed as the new boss, are also an option.

Roma are believed to be in the market for a midfielder. They have been active in this window, having already completed the signings of Houssem Aouar from Olympique Lyonnais and Evan Ndicka for free. They have also signed Leeds United pair Diego Llorente and Rasmus Kristensen on loan deals.

It will be interesting to see where the future lies for the 23-year-old Belgian midfielder.

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New Arsenal signing opens up on playing under Mikel Arteta

Havertz has spoken about Arteta's trust in him.

Arsenal attacker Kai Havertz has admitted that Mikel Arteta's trust in him has been instrumental in helping him get his confidence back. The German, who completed a switch from cross-town rivals Chelsea, has endured three mediocre campaigns in England.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Havertz said:

"Yeah for sure, I think he was giving me this message from the first second when I spoke to him the first time, I felt the support straight away. I think this is very important for me as a player and he just gives the trust in me and I hope that I can give it back."

The 24-year-old joined Arsenal on a £65 million deal this summer. He will be looking to get his career back on track after a poor 2022-23 season with the Blues where he managed to bag just nine goals and one assist.