Arsenal miss out on classy midfielder who pushed for £20m Juventus transfer

Arsenal’s hunt for Leandro Paredes is over after the midfielder signed on loan for Juventus.

Juve have agreed a season-long loan deal without a loan fee. The Turin-based club also have an obligation to buy the player subject to certain sporting objectives. However, the Serie A club will also have the right to make the deal permanent if those conditions are not met.

A fee of €22.6m has been agreed, which will be payable over three years, with other add-ons totalling €3m possible.

Leandro, 28, returns to Italy after five seasons away from Serie A with Juve expecting the Argentinian to bring “dynamism and energy to Juventus with a combination of determination and quality”.

Arsenal were understood to be in the running to land the former Empoli man. But Juve have wrapped up a deal for the player, who started his career at Boca Juniors.

Goal reporter Romeo Agresti suggested Arsenal could try to sign Paredes before the deadline on Thursday night. The Gunners  supposedly made a strong enquiry for the player on Tuesday.

Gianluca Di Marzio of Sky Sport Italia also confirmed Arsenal’s interest. But Juventus were always a potential destination after Paris Saint-Germain boss Christophe Galtier revealed the player’s desire to move to Turin.

Paredes wanted Turin transfer

Paredes had made three appearances from the bench this season, but was left out of the squad to face Toulouse.

Galtier said: “Leandro will not be part of the group.

“To be transparent, I spoke with Leandro after training. He has reached an agreement with Juventus, who we will shortly be playing against in September. He is currently a PSG player but his head is elsewhere.

“There is still no agreement between the two clubs. I took the decision not to put him in the squad so that he could prepare his departure and I could not have a player who, perhaps – perhaps – will leave the club.”

Arsenal have been linked with making a late swoop in the transfer window to bolster their injury-hit midfield.

Albert Sambi Lokonga came into the Arsenal starting XI for their Premier League clash with Aston Villa. Injuries to Mohamed Elneny and Thomas Partey opened the door for Lokonga. But Arteta is understood to be contemplating a late addition ahead of Thursday’s 11pm deadline.

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