Arsene Wenger has brushed off questions regarding his interest in West Brom defender, Jonny Evans, this summer.

Wenger believes that now the season has started, transfer talk should more or less be off the table and refused to be drawn on whether he will be returning for Evans in the future.

Arsenal and Manchester City were said to be heavily interested in the 29-year-old this summer, with the latter allegedly readying a £30m offer at the end of the transfer window.

The Baggies’ manager, Tony Pulis, has since claimed that an £18m bid was lodged from Pep Guardiola’s side but this failed to meet West Brom’s valuation. He also confirmed that the Gunners were in the mix.

After selling Gabriel to Valencia for £10m, a transfer the BBC’s David Ornstein claims Arsenal weren’t banking on, it’s hardly surprising that Wenger was allegedly on the hunt for a new centre-back with Premier League experience.

Whether the boss was telling the truth regarding Arsenal not returning for the Northern Ireland international in the future or not remains to be seen. As Wenger says, the season’s in full-swing now so there’s not a lot of point in speculating at this stage.

Evans has two years left on his contract at West Brom after being at the club since 2015.

The former Manchester United defender has made just three appearances this season after suffering from a thigh problem early on.