Arsenal have been dealt a blow in their pursuit of midfielder William Carvalho
after the Portuguese declared his intention to stay put at Sporting Lisbon for
the near future. Arsenal and Manchester United actively tracked the 22 year old
for an extended period of time and their interest even forced Sporting to
reduce their asking fee from an astronomical £35.8m to a more reasonable price
of £23m.
But the player doesn’t see his
immediate future outside Lisbon: “I am under contract with Sporting and I'm a
Sporting player. There is no way I can say I am going to leave. I am fine at
Sporting.” After name-dropping the club thrice in his statement, the message to
Arsenal must be loud and clear.
Arsene Wenger has
been behind a defensive midfielder to shore up his side and after failing to
land Sami Khedira, Carvalho seemed the next big bet for the Gunners. Man
United’s interest in the player waned once David Moyes left the hotseat, which
pointed to Arsenal being the favourites for Carvalho. But the possible lack of
regular football, considering the plethora of midfield talent at Arsenal, might
have played on the Portuguese International’s mind on Deadline Day.
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