The 22-year-old was hailed as an exciting addition having impressed in Serie A and also for his country in Russia earlier this summer, the midfielder possessing the kind of tenacity and energy Unai Emery wants from his players.
While Torreira has yet to start a Premier League game for Arsenal, having started on the bench in all of Emery’s first three games as manager, he is expected to become a key player.
And Torreira’s agent Pablo Bentacur has revealed that had legendary manager Ancelotti been present at the very start of transfer negotiations with Napoli, the player may have ended up staying in Italy.
Speaking Naples-based radio station Radio CRC, Bentacur said: “It’s a pity, I’m sorry Ancelotti wasn’t there at the start of the negotiation.
“He’d have been a great help for Torreira, he has tremendous international experience. But then Lucas called me and he confirmed to me that negotiations with Arsenal were too advanced for any second thoughts.
“If Arsenal had collapsed then Napoli would have been perfect.
“In the end, the Gunners satisfied our demands and they even were willing to pay €5million more than his release clause.
“The Premier League? He is adapting well to the league and he is happy to be here with Arsenal.”
Despite having yet to start for Arsenal, coming off the bench in all of their matches thus far, Torreira is pleased with his start to life in London.
He told Arsenal’s official website: “I’m really happy. It’s all very new for me because I’ve come from a different type of league.
“The climate is different here and the way of life too, but I’m settling in nicely and training hard – the sessions are different too.
“The confidence will grow with every game, so that’s great.”
Speaking after Arsenal’s 3-1 win over West Ham last weekend, Torreira added: “We’re getting to grips with what the coach wants from us and I think we’ve played some good football in the past few games.
“We got our first win today which was massive for us, but there’s a long road ahead and a lot of games to play.
“So the best thing for us now is to rest up, focus on our next game and concentrate on our preparation, which is vital.”
Arsenal are back in action when they take on newly-promoted Cardiff City, yet to win a game since their top-flight return, on Sunday