Much to the dismay of the Gunners, who were expecting to include David Villa in their club, Tito Vilanova has reiterated the club's desire to retain the 31-year-old striker despite rife rumours of him leaving the club, after Barcelona's 3-1 win over Malaga.
Villa has seen more time on the bench than on the pitch this season, and more than one source has linked him with a move away from Camp Nou. After scoring a brace in BarŅ«a's 5-0 victory over Cordoba in the Copa del Rey, he sustained a hamstring injury during training and did not participate in the Malaga clash. He missed most of last season and the European Championships after breaking his leg in last year's Club World Cup.
The club has repeatedly emphasized how Villa will not leave Barcelona any time soon. Vilanova told reporters:
"David is not going to leave. We are very happy with him. The other day he scored two goals. We've always said that he's coming off a long injury, and he's getting more minutes all the time. But he's suffering more physical problems again."So for the time being Arsenal will have to contend with one striker as apart from Olivier Giroud with Theo Walcott's deal not yet finalized but with Walcott's contract negotiations nearing a conclusion, Villa's inclusion in the Arsenal squad would appear to be second priority now.
However, with Walcott's unsatisfactory performance up front in yesterday's 2-0 home loss to Manchester City, it is yet to be proven whether Walcott's contract extension will benefit the Gunners more than Villa's move to the Emirates.
via Sports Pulse
