Exclusive: Arsenal are set to reject transfer offers for Emile Smith Rowe during ongoing transfer negotiations.

Arsenal are set to reject Aston Villa’s latest underwhelming offer of £30m due to ongoing contract extension negotiations between Emile Smith Rowe, his representatives, and the club. The north London club are ‘confident’ about an agreement being reached for Smith Rowe to sign a five-year extension with his boyhood club.

The Arsenal board believes that Villa’s last offer for the 20-year-old was laughable and was declined as soon as it was put on the table by the midlands club. The dynamic between Arsenal and Aston Villa is said to be fine despite Aston Villa signing Emi Martinez for £20m last summer and eyeing up some of Arsenal’s potential targets in this window, even signing one – Emi Buendia from Norwich City.

Arsenal have made it clear that they are unwilling to accept any disreputable offers for Smith Rowe and will be able to create funds for incomings without selling Smith Rowe. A source close to the club have confirmed that every player is on the transfer list if the right offer comes in but so far Arsenal are not even considering selling Emile Smith Rowe and will not even begin to do so until a more enticing offer comes in for the England U21 international.

The valuation of the player is realistically said to be around £35-45m and by valuing Arsenal’s important assets so highly the club hopes it will put off clubs looking at the valuable assets Arsenal needs going into next season. In itself, the idea of selling a homegrown player such as Emile should be off the cards considering the lack of players we have on the brink or currently playing for their national teams. It would be a huge mistake to sell Emile Smith Rowe, even for the right transfer fee.

Speaking to people who train alongside Smith Rowe on a regular basis at London Colney, Emile is ‘happy’ to be playing in the first-team at Arsenal and ‘excited’ for what is in store for next season.

Earlier in his career, Smith Rowe rejected a move to the Barcelona academy aged 17 to continue playing for his boyhood club, Arsenal. Speaking in an interview before the Coronavirus pandemic, Emile insisted he wouldn’t mind being a ‘one-club man’ (excluding loan spells in Germany and Yorkshire).

The Arsenal wonder-kid spent most of his childhood growing up in Croydon, south London – hence adapting the nickname on television, The Croydon De Bruyne. Despite Emile’s parents both being teachers, football was all he knew and therefore wasn’t the most concentrated in school, he got a kebab after school with his mates and went to the local ‘cages’ for a kickabout…he essentially lived the life of any other school kid in south London with the dream of becoming a professional footballer.

Being a boyhood Arsenal fan, it makes a move away from north London more difficult than if it was a player that supported a different club growing up and then joined Arsenal because Emile is living ‘his dream’ getting first-team minutes aged 20 for the club he has loved all his life.

There is a growing sense that all transfer offers will be ignored for Emile Smith Rowe so that the youngster can put pen to paper as soon as possible and signed a five-year-extension like his teammates believe he will.