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Arsenal hopes of signing Juventus midfielder Arthur Mélo in the current window have been dealt a blow.
The Gunners find themselves threadbare in midfield, with Thomas Partey and Mohamad Elneny away at AFCO< Ainsley-Maitland-Niles now allowed to depart on loan, and injuries and Covid affecting other squad members. Matters were not helped when Granit Xhaka was sent off in the Carabao Cup against Liverpool on Thursday night, earning himself a two-game ban.
Earlier in the week it had been suggested that the Gunners were in advanced talks to sign Arthur, who has only started three games all season for the Serie A side.
However, Juventus manager Max Allegri has now said that he expects the 25-year old to stay with the club.
The Turin side, despite his lack of first-team involvement, do not want him to go unless they can first find a replacement, with suggestions Ruben Loftus-Cheek is one player on their radar.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.