Arsenal are believed to be closing in on a transfer to sign Irish teen sensation Victor Ozhianvuna.
The Gunners are set to fend off plenty of competition in England and abroad for the 16-year-old Shamrock Rovers midfielder.
Shamrock Rovers rate Ozhianvuna extremely highly, and his deal will eclipse the record £1.6million fee Tottenham have paid St Pat’s for Mason Melia – the highest fee for a player in the League of Ireland.
Talks over Ozhianvuna’s future have been in the pipeline for months, but it appears they are close to coming to a conclusion.
At the weekend, Rovers manager Stephen Bradley confirmed that talks are now “quite far down the line.”
It came after he made his full debut, scoring a brilliant goal, in their 4-0 FAI Cup victory over Wexford FC.
Bradley confirms one club is close to a transfer
Speaking after the game, the Shamrock Rovers manager said: “I know Stephen McPhail (club’s Sporting Director) is right down the line with a club. Yeah, I know he’s right there.
“He is a really special talent. I think that is quite clear to see. You will see that more and more as he goes.
“There are so many more layers to him; he can play inside, he can be the 10, he can play off the right, off the front-man. He’s a special talent.
“Teams have watched Victor since he was 12 years of age. That team has travelled across Europe, played top teams, so everyone knows him, all the clubs.
16 y/o Victor Ozhianvuna shows superb technique to finish off a fine team move!
SHA 1-0 WEX pic.twitter.com/GBcoeal5jp
— FAIreland (@FAIreland) July 18, 2025
“Even though he hasn’t been overly exposed over here in the first-team, everyone knows him.
“You are just going to see the kid get better and better. I love his attitude.
“Put him in the carpark or on the pitch, he just wants to play. It’s his ball, he wants it back. That’s how he plays the game.”
Reports suggest it is Arsenal who are expected to complete a deal, although it will mean he will stay at Shamrock Rovers until January 2027 – when he turns 18.
It’s worth noting that Bradley himself also came through the youth academy at Arsenal.
Arsenal target has bags of talent
Ozhianvuna currently plays for Ireland’s Under-18 side and made his senior league debut in the opening game of the season.
He’s since featured 12 times from the bench for the club as Bradley looks to slowly integrate him into the first-team set-up.
Ozhianvuna has physicality for his age and is strong in the tackles with intelligent defensive positioning.
Arsenal are 9/4 second favourites to win the Premier League with Irish bookmakers.
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