Napoli know it will be tough competition for Ayden Heaven, who made his professional debut for Arsenal in early November. The 18-year-old defender, who mostly plays for Arsenal’s U21 team, is on an expiring contract, which means he is free to start negotiations with clubs outside England in January.
Knowing that several English clubs have Ayden Heaven on their wish lists, including Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea and Newcastle, Napoli want to get ahead of what could be a real rat race.
Arsenal are said to want to extend the contract even though he has not yet been able to convince manager Mikel Arteta. – The Spanish manager believes there is still some way to go before he can become a regular part of the club’s first eleven.
According to Calciomercato.com, Napoli have initiated Ayden Heaven’s people as soon as we enter 2025 with the aim of getting a free transfer when his contract expires in the summer.
Arsenal, who want to hold back on their wage budget, have so far not been close to offering Ayden Heaven the salary that both he and football experts believe he is worth.
Who is Ayden Heaven?
Born in London, Heaven joined Arsenal at the age of 13 after spending four years at West Ham’s academy.
A physical centre-back with decent technical skills, he came through the youth ranks and earned a place in the pre-season camp with the first team last season, leading coach Arteta to describe him as “impressive”.
While the Gunners remain confident of keeping him with a new and improved offer, Napoli’s sporting director Giovanni Manna is keeping a close eye on his situation as he could be an attractive profile to bolster Antonio Conte’s defence for next season.
