£30m Liverpool, Man Utd target ‘dreams’ of ‘beautiful’ Arsenal return after 2017 exit
Borussia Dortmund attacker Donyell Malen has said “it is a dream to play in the Premier League” for Arsenal.
The Gunners signed Malen from Ajax in 2015 when he was 16 years old.
The Dutch international did not make a competitive appearance in two years at the club and was sold to PSV for €600,000 (£513,000).
Malen was excellent for PSV, scoring 55 goals and providing 24 assists in 116 appearances in his home country.
He was then snapped up by Dortmund in July 2021 for €30million (£25.6million) and has gone on to score 31 times in 103 matches for the Bundesliga giants.
The 25-year-old – who Transfermarkt currently values at €35m (£29.95m) – has been linked with a move to Liverpool and Manchester United this season, with some reports suggesting the latter were open to a swap deal involving Jadon Sancho.
It is Arsenal that Malen dreams of playing for if he were to return to England, though.
Speaking to Dutch outlet Voetbal Zone, Malen said: “I think, because I played in England as a youth, it is a dream to play in the Premier League. I think that is a beautiful dream.
“I went to Arsenal [when I was younger] so yes, them. I want Arsenal, my favourite club.
“I played there in my youth, I really wanted to break through there. Every now and then in a football career there are points at which you just have to make a decision. Yes, I was training with the first team, and I was 17, 18 at the time.
“I did make steps in the right direction, but I thought I had to just play professional football. I also saw my team-mates playing professional football while I was still playing youth football and I just knew [leaving] was the right thing to do.”
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Transfer journalist Ekrem Konur has claimed that Dortmund will listen to offers for Malen this summer.
He wrote on X: ‘Borussia Dortmund plan to listen to future offers for winger Donyell Malen in the summer transfer window.
‘The 25-year-old Dutch player, who is interested in Premier League and Bundesliga clubs, has a price tag of 50 million euros.’
Arsenal could do a lot worse but Malen does not appear to have the ability to take Gabriel Martinelli or Bukayo Saka’s starting spot under Mikel Arteta.
However, he would be an excellent back-up option for Saka, who has played in 105 of Arsenal’s last 106 Premier League matches.
In 30 appearances this term, Malen has scored 12 goals and made five assists, scoring his first Champions League goal of 2023/24 against his former side PSV in February’s last-16 first leg.
