There are just two weekends to go, and as things stand, Arsenal are still well within a chance of lifting their first Premier League title in two decades.
Mikel Arteta's side seem to have learned from last year's end-of-season collapse and look ready to fight for the final six points against Manchester United and Everton.
Alongside Sporting Director Edu Gaspar, the Spaniard has totally rejuvenated the north Londoners over the last few years by binning the old guard and ushering in a swathe of hungry young talents like Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and Kai Havertz.
However, one of the most influential stars in the squad, William Saliba, was signed under former manager Unai Emery, and based on recent reports, the club might be about to complete a deal similar to the one that landed the talented Frenchman in 2019.
Arsenal transfer news
According to the latest episode of transfer expert Fabrizio Romano's Here We Go podcast (via TEAMtalk), Arsenal are now "pushing" to sign Ajax's incredibly exciting and highly rated young centre-back Jorrel Hato.
Romano explains that while the Amsterdam outfit are "hoping to keep Hato at the club in the summer", the Gunners "are still pushing on Hato, and they believe they are frontrunners in the race to sign him."
The Italian also clarified that while the Dutch giants aren't keen to let him go this year, a deal could still materialise if the north Londoners "make it happen" as they consider the defender a "priority" transfer.
Romano does not mention a price, but in November last year, journalist Suleyman Öztürk told Dutch website SoccerNews that he expects the youngster to be sold for around €100m, which is about £86m.
It would undoubtedly represent a hefty investment from Arsenal were they to go ahead with this deal, but with similarities to the Saliba transfer, it might just be worth it.
How Hato compares to William Saliba
Now, while it would be absurd to hold the 18-year-old Hato up to the standard of a 22-year-old Saliba, who has been playing in a top-five European league for his entire professional career, there are some apparent similarities between the two.
For starters, when the Gunners were keen on landing the young Frenchman back in 2019, there was plenty of hype, excitement and competition for his signature, with Tottenham Hotspur reportedly one of their main competitors at the time.
This time, the Gunners may have to battle with Liverpool to land the "fantastic player", as described by teammate Jordan Henderson, if reports from the start of the season are to be believed.
The second similarity is simply the fact that when the Gunners star was the Dutchman's age, he was also seen as the next big thing, with Fabio Frasconi, his former coach, describing him as "monstrous" back in 2019.
Lastly, while it's impossible to say whether the "insane" gem, as described by U23 scout Antonio Mango, will reach the levels of Arsenal's number two, his underlying numbers from this season are more impressive than the Bondy-born star's were from the season before he signed for Emery.
For example, the Rotterdam-born ace produces a higher non-penalty expected goal and assists figure, maintains a higher passing accuracy, makes considerably more passes, produces more progressive passes and carries, takes more shots, completes more key passes, produces substantially more shot and goal-creating actions, wins more aerial duels, and makes more blocks, all per 90.
However, while the comparison is incredibly one-sided, the younger Saliba did make more tackles, interceptions, clearances and ball recoveries per 90 than his potential new teammate, although that could have more to do with their respective teams.
Non-Penalty Expected Goals + Assists
0.07
0.02
Non-Penalty Goals + Assists
0.09
0.00
Progressive Carries
1.22
0.49
Progressive Passes
4.89
1.48
Progressive Passes Received
0.97
0.28
Shots
0.38
0.28
Attempted Passes (Completed)
82.9 (76.1)
46.9 (40.1)
Passing Accuracy
91.9%
85.4%
Key Passes
0.47
0.07
Goal-Creating Actions
0.19
0.00
Shot-Creating Actions
1.66
0.28
Tackles
2.07
2.25
Blocks
1.57
0.77
Clearances
2.60
3.10
Interceptions
1.35
1.97
Ball Recoveries
5.71
6.20
Aerial Duels Won
2.38
1.97
Ultimately, while it's quite the comparison to live up to, there are undeniable similarities between the potential deal for Hato and the one for Saliba almost five years ago, and if Arsenal have a chance to secure the Dutchman's signature this summer, they must take it.
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