Villarreal striker Samuel Chukwueze has named Chelsea as his favourite club in England, amid previous interest from London rivals Arsenal.
The Nigeria international has established himself as one of the most exciting young talents in La Liga in recent seasons, which has seen him linked with a move to the Premier League.
Arsenal were reported to be nearing a deal four years ago, but the move did not materialise and he stayed at Estadio de la Ceramica.
The 20-year-old had previously revealed how close he was to joining the north London outfit in 2016.
"Playing in England is still an ambition for me," he told Team Talk. "I need to keep on working hard and to keep improving. I really want to play in England.
"It was very close for me to sign for Arsenal, almost had the contract in my hands.
"Unfortunately, it did not work out fine with my academy due to the side of agreement and payment.
"They did not agree with the terms of the contract."
But Chukwueze has recently explained that he has a soft spot for the Gunners' rivals in Frank Lampard's Chelsea.
“My favourite team in England is Chelsea,” Chukwueze said in an Instagram Live.
"I was supporting Chelsea when I was young. When Chelsea lost that Champions League final against Manchester United, I was crying all through the night."
Chukwueze's declaration of his support for the Blues comes after his Villarreal teammate and former Arsenal midfielder Santi Cazorla admitted that the Gunners were interested a move, and that he received calls from his former club regarding the striker.
"Yeah, mainly my Arsenal friends,"Cazorla told Marca.
"They ask me about them [Chukwueze and Pau Torres] and they think that they can make the jump to the Premier League soon.
"It's good that big clubs are interested in the young players at Villarreal but, for the moment, I'm asking them to let them stay here. They still have to make more steps [in their development].
"Those two have great personalities and their feet are on the ground.
"In Pau's case, I'm constantly hearing talk about Manchester City or Barcelona, but he knows that he has to keep improving as a player and we'll see how far he can go in the future."
