Arsenal were close to signing Juventus midfielder Arthur during the January window, but a combination of factors, including Tottenham’s signing of Rodrigo Bentancur, ended that move.

During the January transfer window, Juventus were initially open to letting Arthur Melo leave the club.

Arsenal were seen as a ‘concrete option’ for the player and a move seemed likely.

As the window wound to a close, however, Juventus and Arsenal both became ever more reluctant.

There was a difference between the two clubs, with Arsenal wanting a short six-month loan and Juventus preferring a much lengthier 18-month one.

Arsenal then declined to enter formal negotiations with Juventus for the player, as the club hierarchy didn’t approve of the agreement technical director Edu Gaspar had presented to the Serie A side, according to The Athletic.

Edu and Federico Cherubini at Juventus agreed to an 18-month loan, with a €40m option to buy, but Arsenal, and most likely Mikel Arteta, decided against it such a long loan.

The final straw was Tottenham’s signing of Rodrigo Bentancur, which convinced the Italians to keep hold of Arthur.

Throughout the latter stages of 2021, Arthur spent most of his time on the bench but once the new year rolled around, he started getting into the team.

Arthur has, however, only played 90 minutes in the league twice since the start of 2022 and it remains to be seen if that will be enough playing time to appease the player.

Arthur is under contract until 2025.