Quantcast
Home   >   Transfer News   >   Arsenal ‘keen’ on signing AZ Alkmaar midfielder Kees Smit

Arsenal ‘keen’ on signing AZ Alkmaar midfielder Kees Smit

By on January 1, 2026

Arsenal are reportedly ‘keen’ on signing AZ Alkmaar midfielder Kees Smit, as per TEAMtalk.

Following hard-fought victories over Wolves, Everton, and Brighton & Hove Albion in their last three consecutive Premier League matches, questions started to be raised about whether the Gunners can win the league title if they continue to perform as they did in those games.

However, after thrashing title rival, Aston Villa, 4-1 in midweek, Mikel Arteta’s side have firmly established themselves as the favourites to win the league finally this season.

The North London club lost the reverse game 2-1 vs Unai Emery’s side at Villa Park, courtesy of Emiliano Buendía’s late winner a few weeks ago.

Currently, Arsenal are at the top of the table with 45 points from 19 games, sitting five points ahead of second-placed Manchester City, who have a game in hand.

In the meantime, Arteta has made it clear that Arsenal have been exploring the market to reinforce the squad in January to continue the title march in the second half of this season.

Now, TEAMtalk claim that Arsenal are interested in adding depth to the engine room and are ‘keen’ on purchasing Smit after monitoring his development closely over the last 12 months.

Smit to Arsenal

The 19-year-old has been compared to Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton and is the best young midfield talent to come from the Eredivisie since Frenkie de Jong.

AZ Alkmaar don’t want to part ways with their star man for cheap, with his existing deal set to run until 2028. They want a club record fee to sell him with Tijjani Reijnders’ £17m move to AC Milan, currently their record sale. The Dutch side want at least £52m and may even demand up to £65m.

The report say that Arsenal aren’t the only English club interested in Smit as Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, and Newcastle United are in this race as well.

Outside of the Premier League, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Bayern Munich have also expressed their interest in him, having been impressed by his recent eye-catching performances.

However, AZ Alkmaar have no intention of selling him in mid-season, and Smit isn’t pushing to leave. Therefore, it is highly likely that Arsenal would have to wait until next summer to secure his services.