In the latest of too many links between William Carvalho and Arsenal, Fichajes claim Mikel Arteta is considering signing the player in January.

Fichajes report that William Carvalho is impressing with Real Betis, and Mikel Arteta is considering the signing ahead of the second half of the season. But Betis reportedly aren’t keen to sell mid-season.

Arsenal do have some problems in midfield, with Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny set to leave on AFCON duty in January and some uncertainty over exactly when Granit Xhaka will be back.

It doesn’t seem impossible Arsenal might look to bring in a reinforcement in January, but links to Carvalho should be treated with great scepticism.

For a start, Carvalho was linked to Arsenal repeatedly from 2015 to 2018, yet nothing ever came of it.

There’s never been any reliable report of a bid, just rumours that never seem to develop into anything. He’s one of those names certain outlets seem to use just for an excuse to mention Arsenal.

Six years ago, it wasn’t out of the question to think that maybe something would come of the reported interest at some stage. But he’s 29 now, 30 before the end of the season. If Arsenal were interested, they should have made a serious offer long ago.

As we approach the 2022 January window, signing Carvalho appears at odds with Arsenal’s current transfer strategy. The club didn’t sign anyone over 24 in the summer market, despite bringing in six senior players.

There are too many reasons not to believe this latest link to Carvalho, and too few to take them seriously.