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Arsenal 'willing to let Jakub Kiwior leave on loan'

By Ben Knapton, Senior Reporter | 17 November 2023

Arsenal are reportedly open to letting Polish centre-back Jakub Kiwior leave the club on loan in January amid interest from Roma, AC Milan and Atalanta BC.

Arsenal are reportedly willing to let Polish defender Jakub Kiwior leave the club on loan in January.

The 23-year-old was a surprise acquisition for the Gunners over the winter, joining from Italian outfit Spezia in a €25m (£21.9m) deal to provide cover for Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba.

Kiwior took on a backup role upon his arrival at the Emirates and struggled for game time even in the immediate aftermath of Saliba's season-ending injury, as Rob Holding was called upon instead.

However, with Holding's displays leaving a lot to be desired, Kiwior started each of Arsenal's five Premier League matches in the 2022-23 season, scoring his first goal against Wolverhampton Wanderers on the final day of the campaign.

The Poland international displayed his versatility by playing as a left-back and centre-back during his earliest days at the club, but despite Holding's summer exit for Crystal Palace, he remains bereft of regular minutes.

Poland's Jakub Kiwior celebrates scoring their first goal before it is disallowed on September 10, 2023 © Reuters

Kiwior has totalled just 187 minutes of football across the Premier League and Champions League this season, starting two games in the top flight and only making two substitute appearances in Europe.

The former Spezia man was selected for both of Arsenal's EFL Cup fixtures against Brentford and West Ham United, but he remains a fringe player for the Gunners and has been linked with a temporary exit in January.

Both AC Milan - who are searching for replacements for the injured Pierre Kalulu - and Roma are thought to be keeping tabs on his situation, although it has been claimed that Arsenal view Kiwior as "untransferable" and would block any January offers.

However, a conflicting report from 90min states that Arsenal would consider loaning Kiwior back out to a Serie A club, as they recognise that the centre-back desires more game time at this stage of his career.

Alongside Milan and Jose Mourinho's Roma, Atalanta BC are also said to have expressed an interest in Kiwior, who played 39 times in Serie A during his brief stint with Spezia.

Poland and Spezia centre-back Jakub Kiwior pictured in December 2022 © Reuters

Nevertheless, the report stresses that Arsenal have been satisfied with the progress that Kiwior is making, and they have no plans to shove him out of the door permanently anytime soon.

Upon his arrival in North London, Kiwior signed a five-and-a-half year deal until the summer of 2028, leaving Arsenal in a strong position to play hardball in negotiations with interested parties.

The 23-year-old started all four of Poland's 2022 World Cup matches as the Eagles lost to Argentina in the last 16, and he is expected to be named in the first XI for Friday's Euro 2024 qualifying fixture with the Czech Republic, where victory would see Michal Probierz's side rise into the top two of Group E.

Arsenal's first fixture after the international break sees the Gunners travel to Brentford on November 25, as Mikel Arteta's men aim to overtake one or both of Manchester City and Liverpool, who lock horns in a top-of-the-table showdown earlier that day.

The London derby with the Bees will also mark the Gunners' first fixture since Arteta was charged by the FA over comments he made towards the officials in their 1-0 loss to Newcastle United earlier this month.