Liverpool have suffered a setback in their long-term pursuit of Borussia Dortmund star Jude Bellingham. Although they have long been seen as front-runners to acquire the 19-year-old's services, the finances involved in a potential deal look set to price Jurgen Klopp's side out of the race.
However, the Reds remain in the market for a high-quality midfielder to rejuvenate their options in the middle of the park. Given Liverpool's need to look elsewhere, this could come as a significant blow to Arsenal who are also looking to add to their midfield offerings next season.
The Gunners have been heavily linked with a move for Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who has impressed for Lazio this campaign. The 28-year-old has featured 25 times for the Italians in Serie A this season, directly contributing 12 goals from midfield, leading to many of Europe's biggest clubs registering their interest in the Serbia international.
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One of those clubs weighing up a summer move now appears to be Liverpool, who view him as the ideal Bellingham alternative, Calciomercato claim. This looks set to be a far simpler transfer to complete as Milinkovic-Savic will soon be entering the final 12 months of his contract, with Lazio appearing to concede that he won't sign a new deal.
His current club will likely be unwilling to let him leave for free in the summer of 2024, and a cut-price deal could therefore be agreed at the end of this season. Arsenal's need for a new midfielder appears less urgent than Liverpool's, who look set to lose Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and James Milner when their contracts expire this summer.
This could push Lazio's asking price to a higher level, knowing there is sufficient competition, to squeeze out every last penny. According to Corriere dello Sport, Lazio believe that they could rake in around €40million (£35.3m) for Milinkovic-Savic. However, this figure has now been touted at €50million (£44m) following Liverpool's reported interest.
Across eight years in Italy, the midfielder has scored 64 goals in 330 games, while 39 international caps have been accumulated for Serbia. Arsenal have shown they will not pay over the odds for a transfer target, no matter how keen they are on bringing them to north London.
The most recent example occurred in the January transfer window, when the Gunners refused to meet Shakhtar Donetsk's steep asking price for Mykhailo Mudryk, with the Ukraine international instead joining Chelsea for £88.5million. Should Arsenal choose against pursuing this particular avenue, Mikel Arteta has a number of other candidates in this key position.
football.london understands the north Londoners still want to sign Declan Rice despite welcoming Jorginho to the Emirates Stadium in January. It's also understood the Gunners hold an interest in Martin Zubimendi. Edu previously tried to bring the Real Sociedad star to Arsenal but the Spanish outfit were adamant he would not leave the Reale Arena as they look to secure a Champions League place in La Liga.
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