Arsenal have upset Real Madrid by offering £40m for Karim Benzema, according to reports.

Arsenal and Karim Benzema. A tale as old as dirt.

Filling up a slot on a slow news day, Diario Gol report that Arsenal have made a £40m offer for the long-admired Karim Benzema.

That’s all well and good. However, they claim that Madrid president Florentino Perez feels the offer is “embarrassing”, and values the French striker much higher than that.

In fairness, that could well be the case.

If it didn’t happen in 2013 it’s certainly not going to happen now

Benzema is one of Perez’s favourite players and has resisted many opportunities to sell him in the past.

He’s also a favourite for Zinedine Zidane’s, who plays him in every game despite his woeful form.

The 29-year-old has scored three goals all season, and is said to be annoying his Madrid teammates by being a waste of space. That’s according to the Mirror, anyway.

Quite why Arsenal want or need an ageing and declining striker is honestly beyond me.

It’s an easy story for the Spanish press to write, as Benzema’s name has become synonymous with Arsenal after years of transfer speculation.

However, if it didn’t happen in 2013, when it seemed Madrid would actually sell, it’s certainly not going to happen now.