Arsenal are hoping to sign Jorrel Hato, but they can’t do so until after March, with Ajax looking to extend his deal in the meantime.

The Athletic’s David Ornstein has told Sky Sports that Arsenal like teenage Ajax defender Jorrel Hato, but the player can’t move before he’s 18.

Hato turns 18 in March, and he has other clubs on his case, including Ajax themselves.

Ornstein reports that the Dutch club are trying to renew Hato’s contract, which currently expires in 2025.

Ajax technical director Kelvin de Lang recently confirmed that the club want Hato to stay, and they’re hopeful they’ll be able to convince him to do so.

“We would like him to stay and we are also hopeful that we will get it out of him,” de Lang said of Hato’s potential new contract in early January.

“It may have taken too long, but there have also been changes in our management. But I am hopeful that we will get it out of him.”

As a left-sided defender, The Athletic reported in December that Hato would work on the opposite side to Jurrien Timber. Arsenal believe similarities between their own playstyle and Ajax’s make the adaptation between the two clubs a bit easier.

Hato admitted in October that he’d like to follow in the footsteps of Timber, saying: “The move to Arsenal was a wonderful one for him.

“It is also my dream to one day make such a transfer, but I realize that I still have a very long way to go.”

But Hato wouldn’t come cheap, and The Athletic concluded that Arsenal might decide they need someone more experienced to help the team in the second half of the season.

It seems Ornstein is suggesting Arsenal can’t get the deal done for now anyway, given the issue with the player’s age.

Hato has made 27 appearances for Ajax this season, racking up almost 2,500 minutes. After a distrastrous start to the campaign, Ajax have rallied to move up to fifth in the Eredivisie table.