Jakub Kiwior’s agent has explained why it was ‘difficult’ for the defender to turn Arsenal down, despite all the interest from Serie A clubs.

Jakub Kiwior in training with Arsenal (Photo via Arsenal.com)
Jakub Kiwior in training with Arsenal (Photo via Arsenal.com)

Jakub Kiwior, a 22-year-old Polish centre-back, arrived at Arsenal after a transfer from Spezia in January.

The transfer seemed to come out of nowhere with several top Serie A clubs, including Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Napoli, showing interest in signing the young defender.

According to his agent Sasha Baranov, the reason they chose Arsenal was due to the club’s reputation and the fact that they were the ones who pursued Kiwior the most.

“When Arsenal arrives for a 22-year-old boy it becomes difficult to say no,” Baranov said.

“If it had been Juventus or another team it would have perhaps been the same, but Arsenal is the team that has gone further in the discussions.”

According to reports, a number of Serie A clubs were hesitant to sign Kiwior during the winter market, as they preferred to wait until summer when they had more liquidity.

However, Arsenal acted quickly and made an offer of €23m, plus €2m in add-ons, which was too good for Spezia and Kiwior to refuse.

Eduardo Macia, club director of Spezia, confirmed that the club would also profit from the future sale of Kiwior.

“We do have a percentage of the future sell-on fee for Kiwior, but it is reserved information, so I cannot say how much,” Macia said.

Although he was unable to reveal the exact percentage, previous reports suggest that there was a 5% clause in the deal.

Kiwior has not yet made his debut for Arsenal, as he is behind Gabriel Magalhães and William Saliba in the starting XI.

However, he has already been in the squad and made his first appearance on the bench in the FA Cup against Manchester City.

The future looks bright for the young defender and Arsenal fans are eager to see what he can bring to the club.

As Gianluca Di Marzio said, “That’s the kind of offer you don’t turn down. Good luck to the lad.”