Arteta commented on the interest in his ward

Earlier, there were reports in the media about West Ham's interest in Arsenal midfielder Emile Smith Rowe, with the Hammers looking to loan the Englishman.

Arsenal's manager, Mikel Arteta, was less categorical in his response, as reported by GOAL:

"I'm really pleased with Emile. He's on the right trajectory. He's settled really well, and you know I'm not going to talk about individual situations."

When Arteta was asked if anything had changed in Smith Rowe's life after returning from the injury, he added:

"No changes. Emile is Emile. He has incredible qualities, and we're very happy to have him. Now he needs the opportunities to put on the field all his desire and qualities he has. For that, we have to give him time."

In the current season, the 23-year-old midfielder has not been in high demand under Arteta. In 12 matches across all competitions, he has only played 246 minutes, during which he provided one assist.

Additionally, Smith Rowe has only been in the starting lineup for Arsenal twice this campaign. Transfermarkt values him at 25 million euros.

It was previously reported that Portuguese defender Cedric Soares could leave Arsenal.