Arsenal beat Liverpool and Juventus to sign 17-year-old starlet
Arsenal have confirmed an agreement to sign highly-rated Georgian attacker Andria Bartishvili, who will move to north London in July 2027.
The 17-year-old has signed a pre-contract agreement with the Premier League champions but cannot complete his move until after his 18th birthday next March.
Arsenal confirmed that the transfer remains subject to the completion of the necessary regulatory processes.
Bartishvili is capable of operating as a winger or attacking midfielder and currently plays for Iberia 1999 in Georgia’s top flight.
He remains contracted to Kolkheti 1913 and joined Iberia on loan at the beginning of the 2026 campaign.
The teenager made his senior breakthrough with Kolkheti last year, featuring regularly in the Erovnuli Liga before being named the division’s best under-17 player at the end of the season.
His development has continued following the step up to Iberia.
Bartishvili scored his first senior goal with the winner in a 1-0 victory over Gagra in May and has now registered two goals from 16 league appearances this season.
He has also gained valuable experience in European competition, appearing in Champions League and Europa League qualifying matches for Iberia during the current campaign.
Bartishvili’s progress has been similarly rapid at international level.
After representing Georgia at under-16 level, he scored on his under-17 debut against Slovenia and subsequently progressed through the under-18 and under-21 teams.
UEFA records show that Bartishvili has already made two appearances in European Under-21 Championship qualifying despite being only 17.
His performances in Georgia have inevitably attracted considerable attention, with the youngster even drawing comparisons in his homeland to Paris Saint-Germain star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
The agreement represents another investment in emerging talent as Arsenal continue strengthening their long-term academy pipeline alongside more immediate first-team recruitment.
Igor Tyjon arrived from Blackburn Rovers during the summer, while Arsenal have also moved to secure several highly-rated teenagers from Britain and overseas.
Bartishvili will remain in Georgia for the time being before beginning the next stage of his development in north London next summer.
For Arsenal, securing a player already competing regularly at senior and international youth level represents another potentially significant piece of long-term recruitment.
The post Arsenal beat Liverpool and Juventus to sign 17-year-old starlet first appeared on ArsenalNews.co.uk.