
Mikel Arteta and Arsenal are landing one of Europe’s top young talents (Picture: Carl Recine/Getty Images) Andria Bartishvili has completed a medical with his move to Arsenal set to be completed this weekend. The Gunners have seen off interest from Liverpool and other top clubs from around Europe to land the Georgian wonderkid who flew into London on Thursday, as reported by Geo Team. The 17-year-old has now completed his medical and will now sign a five-year contract at the Emirates. Bartishvili, who has been christened ‘the new Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’, will officially join Arsenal next summer, turning 18 in March next year. Exclusive Premier League previews Get ahead of the start of the season with our weekly football newsletter. Sign up now for free. The teenager will arrive from Georgian side Kolkheti 1913 and has been hailed ‘new Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’. After he was pictured travelling to the capital this week, Bartishvili took to Instagram to pass on his gratitude for the kind messages he had received ahead of his move to Arsenal. ‘A very big thank you to everyone for the congratulations,’ he wrote. 🚨🔴⚪️ BREAKING: Andria Bartishvili has completed his medical as a Arsenal FC new player. 🩺✅The 17-year-old Georgian talent is set to put pen to paper on a 5-year deal with AFC tomorrow. ✍🏻🇬🇪Congratulations, Gooners — Georgia’s gem is yours. 💎 pic.twitter.com/wM2XUh7NBl— Geo Team (@Geo__team) September 3, 2026 Arsenal will be hopeful Bartishvili can replicate the rise of his countryman Kvaratskhelia, who emerged as one of the best wingers in world football following his rise at Napoli and Paris Saint-Germain. In June, former France and Bayern Munich defender Willy Sagnol – now in charge of the Georgian national team – picked Bartishvili out as a special talent. But Sagnol was keen to stress that talent alone was not a gurantee of the young star making it to the highest level. https://www.instagram.com/p/DZ-wQMzjXKL/?hl=en&img_index=1 ‘I watched the youth team play, Bartishvili is a very talented player,’ Sagnol explained. ‘However, for a talented player to take a step forward in his career, technique alone is not enough. ‘The right mindset is needed, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is an example of this. ‘Hopefully, Andria and the other young players will continue to work and develop to become great players in the future.’ Arsenal have made a number additions of their academy this summer with Igor Tyjon, Vincent Joseph, Axel Donczew, Elijah Upson and Mylo Bernard joining the ranks. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source

The 54th Australian to play in the Premier League insists he will continue working hard – and cannot wait to face Erling HaalandOn the opening day of the Premier League season, with just over an hour gone in Hull City’s clash with Manchester United, Lucas Herrington got up off the bench. With the Tigers 2-0 up, manager Sergej Jakirović turned to the 18-year-old Australian to replace injured goalscorer Nobel Mendy with a clear role in mind.“I knew the job that had to be done,” Herrington says, two weeks after his debut. “I knew that we had to see out the game. It wasn’t going to be easy because they were going to throw everything at it. With their subs, they did. They were more attacking.” Continue reading...
With the chance of being face-to-face against Ryan Reynolds' Wrexham, Hugh Jackman revealed his interest in buying a stake in English side Norwich City. Hugh Jackman joins the growing lineup of Hollywood stars stepping into English soccer. With the prospect of squaring off against Deadpool co-star Ryan Reynolds and Wrexham in the EFL Championship, Jackman confirmed his active interest in acquiring a minority ownership stake in Norwich City. Jackman has been a boyhood supporter of Norwich City, rooted in his family connection with his mother originally hailing from the East Anglian city. Having attended matches at Carrow Road over the years, the actor revealed he was previously offered an investment opportunity in the club back in 2010, a proposal he turned down at the time and ultimately came to regret. Now, a fresh opportunity has emerged, and when asked in an interview with talkSPORT whether minority stakeholders offered him a chance to invest in Norwich City, Jackman was transparent about his intentions: “I’m very, very interested, and talking about it right now.“ He praised the transformative work accomplished by Reynolds and Rob McElhenney at Wrexham, while firmly reiterating his loyalty to the Norfolk side. “Good on Ryan, you do your thing, I’m all about the Canaries,” he added. 👀 "I am very, very interested!"💛💚 "I'm all about the canaries!"Hugh Jackman exclusively reveals to talkSPORT that he is "very interested" in buying a stake in Norwich City! pic.twitter.com/LUXzoguIjB— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) September 3, 2026 Jackman concluded with a bold double-promotion prediction, forecasting that both clubs will earn a place in the Premier League for the following season: “I went to Carrow Road a couple of times, and I love the Canaries, and this is the year we’re going to get promoted. My prediction is Norwich and Wrexham are getting promoted this year.“ Reynolds and Jackman face-to-face in the EFL Championship? Reynolds and McElhenney spearheaded the trend of A-list celebrity ownership in English football after acquiring Wrexham, engineering a fairy-tale rise from the fifth-tier National League in 2021 to the EFL Championship. Norwich City, by contrast, boast an extensive history in the Premier League, but with Jackman potentially coming aboard, the two Hollywood stars could face off as club directors this season. The initial fixture between Norwich City and Wrexham is scheduled for December 5 at Carrow Road, with the return leg set for March 16, 2027, at the Racecourse Ground. The two sides met last season, splitting the season series with each club claiming a road victory (2-1 for Norwich in North Wales and 3-2 for Wrexham in Norfolk). Norwich City’s ownership structure Delia Smith and Michael Wynn Jones previously served as the iconic public faces of Norwich City after taking majority control 29 years ago in November 1996. However, the club’s corporate hierarchy recently underwent a major restructuring, initiated when American billionaire Mark Attanasio began building his investment portfolio in the club in 2022. In early 2025, Norwich City issued a formal statement confirming that Norfolk Holdings had assumed 85 percent majority control of the club, with Attanasio leading the board of directors. Consequently, Smith and Wynn Jones retained a combined 10 percent equity stake, with remaining shares distributed among minority investors. Delia Smith and Michael Wynn-Jones celebrate winning Sky Bet Championship back in 2019. (Matthew Lewis/Getty Images) While Jackman revealed his intent to join Norwich City’s investment group, the exact size of his equity stake and degree of operational involvement remain unconfirmed. Although he acknowledged holding preliminary discussions with Smith, the former club chairman now controls only a 10 percent share, with details regarding any equity sale yet to be finalized.
Tap a headline to view metadata and excerpt fields in Sportra, then use the article website button to continue on the original publisher page.