Mikel Arteta has reportedly identified Romeo Lavia as an alternative to Moises Caicedo as he looks for the perfect midfield partner for Declan Rice at Arsenal.
The Gunners failed in their opening bid of £90m plus add-ons for Rice with West Ham holding out for more than £100m.
They’re thought to be preparing an improved offer – much to the frustration of Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag – with reports suggesting a potential Manchester City hijacking is in the offing.
With such a significant outlay on Rice, and a further whack set to be spent on Kai Havertz, it’s thought Arsenal have cooled their interest in Caicedo, with Brighton said to want at least £80m for the Ecuador international.
Chelsea are leading the charge for Caicedo, and that could open the door for Arsenal to move for another Blues target, Romeo Lavia, according to Mirror.
The teenager was the subject of a £50m deadline day bid from Chelsea last summer, despite only moving to Southampton from Manchester City for £10.5m weeks beforehand.
Saints rejected that bid but are now thought to be open to selling Lavia for the same price having been relegated to the Championship.
Liverpool, Spurs and Manchester United have also been linked with Lavia, while City hold a buyback clause for the 19-year-old, whom Pep Guardiola described as “incredible” when asked about the midfielder’s form in his debut season for Southampton.
“I am really impressed with what Romeo has done and is doing,” the City boss said.
“We had, and we have, an incredible opinion about him. We thought to keep him, but maybe he would not (get) enough minutes like he has in Southampton.
“(It’s a) Good experience to go to the Premier League and play at this early age. So important.”
But City’s attention appears to be elsewhere as they look for midfield additions; potential replacements for Ilkay Gundogan, who could be on his way to Barcelona.
They could yet make a move for Rice, while Chelsea star Mateo Kovacic is thought to be an imminent addition to the squad.
Arsenal will hope therefore that they will have a relatively clear run to land Lavia, though Chelsea are on the lookout for multiple midfielders and may battle the Gunners for the Belgian as talks with Brighton continue over Caicedo.
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