Arsenal links to Nicolo Zaniolo have been shot down as quickly as they appeared, with the Gunners not in negotiations for the 23-year-old.

MILAN, ITALY - OCTOBER 01: Nicolo Zaniolo of AS Roma looks on during the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and AS Roma at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on October 01, 2022 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
MILAN, ITALY: Nicolo Zaniolo of AS Roma looks on during the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and AS Roma at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on October 01, 2022. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

Italian outlet Radio Radio reported on Friday that Arsenal were in the race for Nicolo Zaniolo of AS Roma, considering either signing him for free when his contract ends in 2024 or bringing him in earlier with a €25m summer bid.

But Fabrizio Romano claims there’s nothing to the story. Writing for CaughtOffside, Romano reports that he’s aware of the speculation but it’s a surprising story as there are no negotiations between Arsenal and Zaniolo.

The journalist adds that Zaniolo has never been close to a Premier League move, with Tottenham Hotspur the only club to be reliably linked with interest.

Even then, Spurs didn’t make a concrete move and it seems those links are now in the past.

Nicolo Zaniolo plays in midfield for Roma, and he’s scored two goals and assisted three in 14 appearances this season. But things haven’t always gone to plan this campaign so far.

In two of his three Europa League appearances, Zaniolo scored once and assisted three times. In the third, he got a red card and a two-game suspension.

AS Roma's Italian midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo gestures during the UEFA Europa League Group C group stage football match between AS Roma and HJK Helsinki on September 15, 2022 at the Olympic stadium in Rome. (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)
AS Roma’s Italian midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo gestures during the UEFA Europa League Group C group stage football match between AS Roma and HJK Helsinki on September 15, 2022. (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)

In the league, Zaniolo has mostly played as a regular starter, but he had a shoulder injury for a few weeks in August and he’s only contributed to one goal in Serie A since then.

With Italy failing to qualify for the World Cup, Zaniolo has had some time off over the last month. But it doesn’t look like he’s been using that time to engineer a move to north London.

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