Arsenal have reportedly pulled out of the deal for young Nigerian midfielder, Kelechi Nwakali, due to financial reasons, despite his brother saying otherwise.

The 17-year-old was thought to be as good as a Gunner after he and his compatriot, Samuel Chukwueze, visited north London recently. However, according to the Daily Star, the deal for the promising youngster, who is reportedly also wanted by Ajax, is said to have fallen through in its final stages due to financial constraints.

In other words, we weren’t willing to pay what the player or – more likely – his representatives were demanding.

This is all a little odd, considering Nwakali himself gave an interview with allnigeriasoccer.com both in March claiming that he’d just returned from signing a five-year-deal with us and recently, once again confirming that his brother had signed with us. He even posed for a picture with Arsene Wenger!

Whether the English media have got the wrong end of the stick or there’s more to this than meets the eye remains to be seen.