Arsenal are interested in Daniele Rugani, but Juventus have rejected their first offer of a two-year loan, according to reports in Italy.

Calciomercato and Gazzetta report that Arsenal came in for Rugani with a two-year loan offer, but this was rejected by Juventus given the injury to Giorgio Chiellini.

If the Serie A club are going to sell a centre-back now, it’s only going to be on a permanent deal so they have the funds to replace him. The suggestion is that Arsenal are still planning to return with a second offer though.

Arsenal have been linked to a number of Juventus players in the last week or so, including Sami Khedira and Moise Kean, who now appears to be on the way to Everton.

The Gunners are certainly in the market for a centre-back, and David Ornstein suggested on BBC 5 Live yesterday that it’s growing more likely that would be a loan deal, given the time and budget constraints at the end of the window.

If Juventus aren’t interested in a loan, that makes things more difficult again. The top tier Italian sources like Di Marzio are yet to make any mention of Rugani, so, for now, this rumour doesn’t have much going for it. That could always change in the coming week.