Lucas Torreira has made no secret of his intention to leave Arsenal to join Fiorentina on a permanent basis this summer, but the two clubs are yet to reach an agreement over a fee.
The Uruguay international enjoyed a productive 2021/22 season on loan with the Florence outfit as he made a total of 35 appearances across all competitions, getting forward from his defensive midfield position to score five goals and even weigh in with a couple of assists.
Having fallen down the pecking order under Mikel Arteta and with the Gunners expected to bolster their midfield options in the summer transfer window, it's little surprise that Torreira is keen to seal a permanent exit: "My intention is to stay at Fiorentina, but the club will need to find an agreement with Arsenal," he revealed last month. "I am very well in Florence. I am very well in Italy."
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Now, it was reported by football.london towards the end of last season that Torreira was expected to join Fiorentina as a purchase to buy option for around £13million was included in the loan agreement, and at the time, the two clubs were in negotiations over making the move permanent.
However, those talks appear to have hit a snag with Italian publication Calciomercato claiming that Fiorentina have decided against triggering the option to sign the midfielder permanently. As a result, Arsenal have apparently offered Torreira to another Serie A club in Lazio - now managed by former Chelsea head coach Maurizio Sarri.
With that said, there were reports that Fiorentina apparently hadn't given up hope of completing a deal for Torreira and were preparing a final bid in the region of £6m. But if knocked back by the Gunners the plan was to turn their attentions to Folarin Grillitsch instead.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Fiorentina have a verbal agreement with the Austria international on a four-year contract which may suggest Arteta and Arsenal technical director Edu are refusing to soften their stance on how much they want for Torreira.
This stance is perhaps vindicated by Fiorentina receiving a big payday in the January transfer window when they sold Dusan Vlahovic to Juventus. Therefore, one can assume that the Florence-based club should have no problem triggering the £13m clause to sign Torreria especially after banking £66m five months ago.
In any event, Fiorentina boss Vincenzo Italiano has already made it clear that he would like the 26-year-old to return: "The playmaker is the fulcrum of the team. So if the midfield is running smoothly, the whole side runs smoothly. This is one of the main principles of football," he told Football Italia.
"Lucas brought balance and has been prolific in front of goal too, showing his extraordinary quality. There are no doubts over what he can give this squad in future."
