Arsenal were ‘used’ by Real Madrid superstar Vinicius Junior, says John Obi Mikel (Picture: The Obi One Podcast) Chelsea hero John Obi Mikel has trolled Arsenal supporters after the club missed out on signing Vinicius Junior, asking the fanbase ‘what they were smoking’ to convince them a deal was possible. Vinicius emerged as a surprise transfer target for Arsenal on the back of the club’s title triumph last season, with Mikel Arteta said to be ‘absolutely smitten’ with the idea of capturing the Brazilian. A proposed move had been approved ‘at all levels’ at the Emirates and the Gunners were reportedly ready to make the 26-year-old the highest-paid player in Premier League history. But Vinicius would go on to commit his future to Real Madrid, putting pen to paper on a six-year contract extension at the Bernabeu, forcing the English champions to consider alternatives elsewhere. Get the latest transfer news every morning Sign up to our daily football newsletter for personalised updates on who your team is trying to sign and who won't be around next season. It’s understood PSG’s Bradley Barcola and Juventus’ Kenan Yildiz remain on Arsenal’s radar with three weeks remaining of the transfer window, but it would likely take an earth-shattering offer to coax either club into a deal before the deadline. Prior to Vinicius signing his extension, Obi Mikel told Arsenal fans to ‘forget’ about the 2024 Ballon d’Or runner-up, insisting the attacker was simply ‘using’ the Gunners to get a better deal. And in the latest episode of The Obi One Podcast, the former Chelsea and Nigeria midfielder couldn’t resist reminding supporters of his previous remarks. Vinicius ignored interest from Arsenal to sign a new six-year deal in Madrid (Picture: Getty) Arsenal had reportedly been prepared to make Vinicius the highest-paid player in Premier League history (Picture: Getty) Asked if signing a new deal had perhaps been Vinicius’ plan all along, Obi Mikel replied: ‘Of course, mate. F***inghell. I don’t know what the Arsenal fans were expecting. ‘You win the league after 22 years and then you all of a sudden think: that’s it, you’ve arrived, you’re one of the big boys again. No, you’re not. ‘They’ve just been humbled because I said it: there’s no way Vinicius Junior is leaving Real Madrid to go to Arsenal, a club that’s won one title in 22 years. ‘This guy wins titles, he’s won lots of titles at Real Madrid. He wants to win titles season after season, the Champions League, La Liga, competing year after year and winning those titles. {"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Martin Odegaard heads ball directly into police officer during Arsenal parade","contentUrl":"https:\/\/videos.metro.co.uk\/video\/met\/2026\/06\/01\/188721103218914644\/480x270_MP4_188721103218914644.mp4","description":"Whoops!","duration":"T8S","height":480,"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i.dailymail.com\/1s\/2026\/06\/01\/12\/109008017-0-image-a-36_1780314932393.jpg","uploadDate":"2026-06-01T12:52:23+0100","width":270} To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Up Next Previous Page Next Page window.addEventListener('metroVideo:relatedVideosCarouselLoaded', function(data) { if (typeof(data.detail) === 'undefined' || typeof(data.detail.carousel) === 'undefined' || typeof(data.detail.carousel.el_) === 'undefined') { return; } var player = data.detail.carousel.el_; var container = player.closest('.metro-video-player'); var placeholder = container.querySelector('.metro-video-player__up-next-placeholder'); if (placeholder) { container.removeChild(placeholder); container.classList.add('metro-video-player--related-videos-loaded'); } }); ‘He’s tasted what it feels like winning the Champions League, Arsenal have never won the Champions League. Zero. ‘You expect a player who has won the Champions League with Real Madrid to leave that, everything that he’s built at Real Madrid, and the squad that Jose Mourinho
