Douglas Luiz congratulated by Prince William for landing Arsenal blow

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Aston Villa midfielder and Arsenal target Douglas Luiz was congratulated by Prince William after signing a new deal at the west Midlands club earlier this month, according to reports. The 24-year-old was pursued by Arsenal towards the end of the summer transfer window but saw as many as three bids rebuffed by Villa, who stood firm to prevent the 24-year-old from moving to north London.

The Gunners had been tipped to renew their efforts to sign Luiz in January, with his contract initially set to expire at the end of the season, but the midfielder has since penned a new long-term deal to suggest that he will be going nowhere at the turn of the year. He received a surprise phone call from Prince William shortly after signing his new contract and told Globo Esporte that it was a privilege to have spoken to the royal, who is a lifelong Villa fan.

“It was a great honour to be congratulated by a member of the royal family, the future king,” said Luiz. “I was happy to hear that he follows my work and Aston Villa. I hope to be able to meet him, in case the visit happens, and play [football] with him.”

It is said that the call was made by Villa co-owner Nassef Sawiris, who was more than happy to put the Prince of Wales in touch with Luiz to congratulate the Brazilian playmaker on his new contract. However, it remains to be seen whether Luiz will be targeted by Arsenal once again in spite of his extension when the January transfer window rolls around.

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The Gunners may still be inclined to test Villa’s resolve with a big-money bid if they feel that Luiz is the best candidate to improve their midfield ranks at the turn of the year. Former Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor recently suggested that an offer in the region of £50million would likely suffice for Arsenal, who are said to be keen on adding to their options in the centre of the pitch when the market reopens.

“They’ve [Villa] got him tied down so they can’t lose him on the cheap, it might come to the summer when they decide to sell him and Arsenal have to pay more,” Agbonhalor told Football Insider.

“Sometimes contracts can hide what is really going on. In the summer, Luiz might go but instead of £20m it might be £50m or £60m. The position he’s in, he’s laughing because he’s got his wages up high. I think it suits both the club and the player, to be honest.”

Luiz has enjoyed a decent start to the Premier League campaign with Villa and remains contracted until the summer of 2026 after putting pen to paper on his new deal earlier this month. He has registered a total of 121 appearances in claret and blue and will be hoping to be involved for Brazil at this year’s World Cup in Qatar after winning nine caps for the Selecao over the last few years.

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