Arsenal have scouted Nicolo Barella again, this time watching him against Juventus in Cagliari’s match on Tuesday night.

UDINE, ITALY - MARCH 23: Nicolo Barella of Italy celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the 2020 UEFA European Championships group J qualifying match between Italy and Finland at Stadio Friuli on March 23, 2019 in Udine, Italy. (Photo by Claudio Villa/Getty Images)
UDINE, ITALY – MARCH 23: Nicolo Barella of Italy celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the 2020 UEFA European Championships group J qualifying match between Italy and Finland at Stadio Friuli on March 23, 2019 in Udine, Italy. (Photo by Claudio Villa/Getty Images)

Arsenal already had scouts watch the Cagliari midfielder Nicolo Barella face Inter Milan in a 2-1 win at the end of February, according to reports in Italy. He missed a penalty in that game despite an otherwise solid performance.

The Gunners have been scouting the Italy international for a while now, and Barella himself even spoke about the rumours in October, saying the outside interest made him “proud”.

In January, reports suggested Chelsea had withdrawn from the race to sign him and Napoli were Arsenal’s “main challenger” for Barella’s signature. Both clubs were expected to make a move in summer, rather than the winter window, which appears to be how things have panned out.

With 89 Serie A appearances for Cagliari, seven goals, three assists and five caps for his country (with one goal scored against Finland during the most recent international break), Barella has made an impressive start to his career.

Barella is under contract until 2022 and is valued at around £27m.