It seems very unlikely he'll join permanently now, which is disappointing, as I think that if he'd had chance to put in a full pre-season with Emery and his team commiting to him as our number 9, and building our attack around the pace and dynamism of him, Rogers, Malen, JJ etc. it really would have taken us to another level.
His loan spell was overall a success - I don't remember him dropping a truly poor game at any point. And amidst what were generally 7.5/10 performances, there were glimpses of the top level we could reach with him up front and his ability to totally change a game with world-class quality, which ultimately I think would have taken us to a higher ceiling than we can have with Watkins (as much as I love him).
Despite the expected idiots in the media when he first arrived, there were never any questions about his personality, commitment and professionalism, and I really think he'd have thrived under Unai, so I'm clinging to the 10% chance he might rock up in July. But sadly it seems unlikely - wish him the best.
