A deal taking Granit Xhaka to AS Roma is ‘almost there’ despite Arsenal rejecting the Serie A club’s latest bid, according to a report.

Following recent reports that Arsenal had rejected a third bid for Granit Xhaka in recent days, the BBC have added credibility to the rumours by claiming the Gunners have indeed turned down Roma’s latest bid.

They claim the €15m bid fell short of Arsenal’s valuation. Jose Mourinho remains keen to take Xhaka to Serie A, but they’re also looking at Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz.

Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio is more optimistic, however. He claims (via HITC): “Xhaka and Patricio operations are almost at the finish line. We are almost there!”

After almost a month of discussions, the two clubs still have no agreement. Xhaka has a contract agreement with Roma, but RomaPress claim the Serie A club don’t intend to raise their offer again. They’re now waiting to see how the situation evolves.

Football.London report that Xhaka would be signing a five-year deal, and that the move is expected to cost in the region of €20m. But with AS Roma seemingly failing to raise their bid above €15m, Di Marzio’s optimism may be misplaced.