Myles Lewis-Skelly resisted interest from Real Madrid to commit to a new deal with Arsenal this week.
The teenage left-back, after this past season's first team and England breakthrough, signed a new long-term contract with the Gunners on Thursday.
But The Times says Lewis-Skelly put pen to paper only after fielding interest from Real Madrid.
With a year to run on his previous contract, Real sought out the 18-year-old to discuss the prospect of a pre-contract in January ahead of a Bosman move in June.
However, Lewis-Skelly turned down the approach to commit to Arsenal until 2030.