Arthur Melo 's agent has given Arsenal an obvious nudge to prepare their transfer plans, hinting that the Juventus ace will be on the move this summer.
The 25-year-old was on the verge of joining the Gunners during the January transfer window, but Arthur ultimately remained in Turin after the Bianconeri were unable to find a suitable replacement before the deadline, leaving Mikel Arteta light in midfield.
Now, though, agent Federico Pastorello has hinted that his client is set to depart the Allianz Stadium over the coming months, admitting that the playmaker's profile in unsuited to Massimiliano Allegri 's style of play. "In January he was close to leaving and joining Arsenal," Pastorello told La Repubblica, via Metro.
"He is too important a player to be marginalised, he must also think about his situation with the national team. He was signed to play a different style of football, with Maurizio Sarri he would have played [ Chelsea star] Jorginho, Allegri likes him but instead he wants to play with two more physical midfielders.
"It's a tactical question, and I don't make the technical choices. But it's not in anyone's interest to continue in this situation." Arthur has still racked up 20 Serie A appearances this season, having had to wait until October 30 for his first start and only receiving two more before Christmas.
But by February after his failed move to the Emirates, the Brazilian was beginning to get regular game time and was credited for his performance in Juventus' 2-0 victory over Hellas Verona which boosted their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League. Allegri was notably complimentary when discussing the display, praising Arthur's energy and "extraordinary" technical abilities.
Have your say! Would Arthur be a good signing for Arsenal? Give us your verdict in the comments section.
"Arthur is improving, he played very well on Sunday," Bianconeri boss declared. "He's like a child, always running behind the ball. Sometimes he has to handle himself a little bit more, but he put in a great performance against Hellas Verona. He has extraordinary technical abilities."
Arsenal's technical director, Edu, recently opened up on why the Gunners decided not to pursue other targets in January, telling ESPN Brazil ahead of last month's 3-1 win against Manchester United : "The budget we used last summer, we prefer to use it to rebalance the squad. There was no point in hiring one or two players, the squad was not prepared to absorb two players, we needed to rebalance the squad.
"Maybe next season we can go to one or two players. Today we find a much more balanced squad. Our planning has already been done, it has already reached the owners. It's a matter of step by step, how we are going to finish the season and to put in plan the planning that I'm very excited about."
