Diego Simeone wants Noni Madueke at Atletico Madrid. Juventus have been sizing up the same move. Arsenal’s answer, before either club has picked up a phone, is no.
The 24-year-old has played 23 Premier League minutes this season, no goals and no starts under Mikel Arteta. That is the pressure point that has European scouts circling this early in the campaign.
Simeone is drawn to what a winger with genuine pace and directness would give his attack, according to Goal. Atletico and Juventus are both understood to be weighing a loan with an option to buy as the most realistic January route, rather than a straight transfer.
Arsenal’s price for a 24-year-old they still rate
Arsenal spent around €56m to sign Madueke from Chelsea in July 2025, and his current estimated transfer value stands at €49.7m. At those numbers, and this early in the season, a mid-season exit is not what the club wants.
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Arteta, according to Goal, does not want to lose senior squad depth in the middle of a demanding fixture list. Arsenal are running three competitions into the winter, and a rotation option signed for eight-figure money is not the profile a manager surrenders to a rival in January.
Max Dowman is the awkward part
The complication is 16-year-old Max Dowman. FootballTransfers’ analysis has him leapfrogging Madueke as the backup to Bukayo Saka on the right, with a long-term ceiling that some inside the club believe could one day rival Saka himself.
If Dowman keeps taking minutes off Madueke and Saka stays fit, the route back to a league start narrows further. Madueke has fared better in the cups so far, Goal reports: he started the Community Shield, featured against Napoli in the Champions League and scored in a 4-2 Carabao Cup win over Ipswich Town.
Madueke ready to stay and fight
Madueke has no immediate desire to leave. He is willing to stay and compete for a regular place in the XI, according to Football Insider, whose source added.
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“If Arsenal open the door for Noni Madueke to potentially leave in January, I’m sure there’ll be lot of clubs interested.”
That door, for now, is shut. Both Atletico and Juventus will get their next chance when the January window opens.
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