Kelechi Nwakali confirms Arsenal transfer

Arsenal have successfully fought off some of the biggest clubs in the world to win the signature of prized Nigerian youth player Kelechi Nwakali, as he confirmed today that he and his agent were flying to London today to sign with Arsenal:

And now Nigerian outlet Tribune reports that Nwakali is flying to London with his agent to complete a move to the Emirates Stadium.

They managed to grab a word with him before his flew out, and the player says he is happy to be moving to the club.

‘I am going to Arsenal to work and try to be the best I can,’ he said.

‘With God anything is possible, to work hard to justify my claim for first team football.’

Also joining him at Arsenal will be his Nigerian U17 teammate Samuel Chukwueze.

The signing of Nwakali - who chose Arsenal over Manchester City and Bayern Munich, among others - further hints at the transformation of the youth academy which had, by all accounts, a pretty miserable run last season.

Nwakali comes with the sort of pedigree rarely seen in a youth player. He captained Nigeria's U17 World Cup-winning side last year and was voted Player of the Tournament, scoring three goals and adding three assists in seven matches. An attacking midfielder with a keen sense of vision, Nwakali will slot in easily at Arsenal; his range of passing and accuracy appears to be one of his major strengths.

Including the Mohamed Elneny transfer earlier this month, these two highly sought-after players make it a total of three new faces at the club since the beginning of the January transfer window. With deadline day coming up on Monday, it remains to be seen whether or not Arsene Wenger's shopping this month is finished.

In the meantime, enjoy these Nwakali U17 World Cup highlights: