Arteta gives update on Arsenal's transfer plans ahead of Deadline Day
Arsenal could be helped by Juventus in their bid to land Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz after missing out on the services of Arthur Melo on a six-month loan deal. The latter has struggled to hold down a regular place for the Italian giants as of late, making just eight appearances in Serie A since returning from a long-term injury at the end of September.
He is said to be a target for Arsenal, who have room to sign a new midfielder following Ainsley Maitland Niles' loan move to Roma earlier this month.
Arthur was recently the subject of an offer from the Gunners to bring him to the Emirates Stadium on a temporary basis until the end of the season.
He is said to be keen on the idea of joining the club, but any hopes of striking a deal with the Brazilian midfielder now appear to be dead in the water.
Juventus are only said to be willing to let Arthur leave on an 18-month loan deal with his full salary covered by Arsenal.
The north Londoners are insisting on a six-month agreement, though, with talks said to have reached an impasse over the last week as a result.
Arsenal have recently been linked with a late move for Douglas Luiz (Image: GETTY)
However, it seems as though Juventus could soon come to the rescue by helping Arsenal to snap up a worthy alternative over the coming days.
Arsenal have since been credited with an interest in Luiz, with Edu and Mikel Arteta weighing up a late bid for his services before the end of the month, according to Birmingham Live.
That said, it remains to be seen whether Villa would entertain the idea of allowing Luiz to leave the club with just four days until the January window slams shut.
It seems likely that a replacement may need to be found before the 23-year-old's departure can be sanctioned, with Juventus able to step in and assist Arsenal's efforts.
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Villa are said to be eyeing a move for Rodrigo Bentancur, who has struggled to make an impact in Turin since the beginning of the campaign.
They are believed to be drawing up a bid of around £20million to secure the Uruguayan playmaker's signature ahead of the impending deadline.
His arrival at Villa Park could open up the possibility of a late exit for Luiz if Arsenal decide to firm up their reported interest in the midfielder in the near future.
Villa boss Steven Gerrard recently admitted that he is yet to begin talks over a new contract with Luiz but insisted that he remains a key member of the squad, suggesting that a move elsewhere could be difficult to engineer before the end of the window.
The Gunners are yet to make any signings in the January window (Image: EXPRESS)
"Dougie has done OK for us, we've been happy with his training level and the performances that he has given," Gerrard told reporters earlier this month.
"We still think that there's room for him to get better and improve. You know, he had a bit of an injury when we first arrived and we still think there's another gear or two for Dougie to go into.
"He's doing us a job as a No 6 at the moment. We know that he maybe prefers to play a bit more advanced but he's helped us out an awful lot on the back of [Marvelous] Nakamba's injury.
"We rate the player extremely high and we're hoping from now until the end of the season he can really perform at his best and help the team moving forward."
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