Arsenal are considering making a bid for Sporting CP winger Gelson Martins, according to reports in Portugal, but they face competition from Juventus.

Thursday’s O Jogo reports Arsenal are thinking about making a proposal to Sporting for the player, and Juventus are investigating the same thing. However, the Portuguese club don’t particularly want to let one of their key players go.

Martins has a contract until 2022, and a release clause of €60m (£52.7m), so picking him up won’t be straightforward. The 23-year-old had a strong campaign in Portugal, scoring 13 goals and assisting the same number in 52 matches.

There’s an argument that Arsenal are lacking a player like him as well. There aren’t many pacey and skillful dribblers in the squad with end product. The kind that can relieve pressure when you’re pinned back, or provide a moment of inspiration when you’re trying to break a team down.

Previous reports suggested Sporting weren’t willing to negotiate for significantly less than the release clause. There’s no reason why that would be any different now, and there are always top clubs around Europe linked with the player, for competition.

Personally, I can’t see Arsenal spending almost their entire budget on him at this stage. There are plenty of cheaper options around. We’ll see.