Arsenal’s Forest hero was wanted by three clubs over summer

Arsenal thrashed Nottingham Forest 5-0 on Sunday to leapfrog Manchester City back into top spot in the Premier League table.

The reigning champions had moved into first place 24 hours earlier courtesy of a 1-0 win over Leicester City, but Mikel Arteta’s side reacted in style.

It wasn’t all good news for the Spaniard though, as Bukayo Saka was forced off with an injury in the first-half.

Arteta claimed afterwards that he was optimistic that the injury wasn’t too serious, and that the England international is likely to be fit for the World Cup next month.

Saka was replaced during the game by Reiss Nelson, who was making first Premier League appearance of the season.

The 22-year-old took his opportunity, scoring twice and providing an assist all within eight second-half minutes to put The Gunners in a commanding position.

Prior to Sunday’s match, the ex-England under-21 international had scored just once in 23 Premier League appearances.

Since his heroics, it has been revealed that Arsenal rejected a number of offers for the player during the recent transfer window.

As reported by Fabrizio Romano on his Substack column with CaughtOffside, The Gunners rejected at least three offers for the player over the summer.

Nelson has been involved with Arsenal since the age of eight

“More than three clubs asked for Nelson on loan in the summer, but Arsenal decided to keep him,” he said.

Romano also revealed that manager Arteta has been impressed with the player’s showings in training.

“Mikel Arteta was really happy with his approach to training. Nelson can be a really important player for Arsenal to be used when rotating their squad for now,” he added.

To date, Nelson has made 52 appearances for Arsenal, since graduating through the club’s academy.

His time in north London started when he was just eight and he has remained with the club ever since, with the exception of loan spells with Hoffenheim and Feyenoord.

Nelson impressed for the Dutch side last season, scoring four goals and providing seven assists, but the form of Saka and Gabriel Martinelli has limited his first team opportunities this season.

Arsenal, like most clubs, face a hectic schedule between now and May, with the exception of the mid-season sabbatical for the World Cup.

With that in mind, Nelson seems likely to see an increase in his playing time following his superb display against Forest, especially if Saka is sidelined.

Nelson’s versatility will also likely be of interest to Arteta, with the Englishman able to play on either flank.