Arsenal is reportedly in the race, along with Chelsea and Liverpool, to sign Southampton star Romeo Lavia for £50 million.
The 19-year-old recently signed from Manchester City to Southampton last summer and has signed a five-year contract - but after being relegated to the Championship from the Premier League, it looks like he will be leaving St Mary's soon.
Chelsea has started talks with Southampton over a deal, while Liverpool is planning a bid for Lavia and are in touch with the holding midfielder's representatives.
But Arsenal is now said to have held talks with Lavia as well and have a "very good relationship" with her side, with the Gunners believed to have a "special and strong interest" in bringing her to the Emirates. The north London outfit have reshaped their midfield and are poised to benefit from Thomas Partey this summer as he and Granit Xhaka are set to depart the club in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, Manchester United is believed to admire Lavia but has shown no interest, whereas City's buy-back clause only runs until 2024.
Lavia is one of Southampton's most valued assets so they want to ensure they maximize their profits should she ever leave and it is believed they want up to £50m for her. That's partly because there were multiple clauses in his contract, which he signed after joining from City, including his former club receiving 25 percent of any selling fees.
The likes of James Ward-Prowse, Kyle Walker-Peters, and Tino Livramento are also likely to receive offers from Premier League clubs following Southampton's relegation but the Saints are pushing for a hefty price tag.
With the likes of Newcastle and Aston Villa interested in Ward-Prowse, the south coast club is also expecting £50m for the England international. Arsenal is expecting to sell both Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka to raise an amount of money to reshuffle their midfield before the start of next season.
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