Arsenal and Chelsea have contested the signing of a number of players this summer.
First there were rumour that both London outfits were keen on bringing Gabriel Jesus in from Manchester City, a battle that obviously the Gunners wound up winning a little earlier in July.
And then there was speculation that Arsenal and Chelsea were keen on signing Raphina, a battle that neither won after the former Leeds United winger joined Barcelona this month.
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic has also been linked with both clubs, with Maurizio Sarri, the Lazio coach, wanting the 27-year-old to join the Stamford Bridge club, it was reported by Il Messaggero this month.
However, Il Mattino have this morning reported that the Serie A club want Arsenal – and Manchester United – to make an offer for the big midfielder in an effort to start a bidding war.
The report adds that Lazio would accept around £50 million for Milinkovic-Savic.
Arsenal might well duck back into the transfer market before September for another midfielder, despite already signing Fabio Vieira.
Adding another body in the middle of the park makes complete sense for Mikel Arteta and Edu but time will tell whether he’s a legitimate target.
Chelsea, on the other hand, certainly need an additional midfielder in the squad and with Sarri already encouraging him to move to West London, it’ll be fascinating to see whether the Emirates Stadium outfit and their rivals wind up competing for this player, too.
