Former Arsenal defender Konstantinos Mavropanos wants to leave VfB Stuttgart now or in the summer, but Atletico Madrid won’t be in for him.

Florian Plettenberg of Sky Sport Germany reports that ex-Arsenal defender Konstantinos Mavropanos wants to leave VfB Stuttgart either now or in the summer, less than a year after signing for the Bundesliga club.

Atletico reportedly held talks over the signing, and Stuttgart need money, but the La Liga side decided they can’t buy Mavropanos for Financial Fair Play reasons. A loan with an option to buy is not on the table.

English clubs are in the race for Mavropanos, but Stuttgart are clearly not willing to sell unless they get a significant offer.

After a 15th-place finish in Mavropanos’ first full season with Stuttgart (on loan), they currently sit 16th with the fourth-worst defensive record in the league in his first season since joining permanently.

For the second season running, Mavropanos is in the midst of a relegation battle with the German club.

They’re currently just one point clear of the automatic relegation places, and a 16th-place finish would send them to a relegation play-off.

It’s no great surprise the centre-back therefore wants to leave. But it was a similar story last summer, and talks over an exit never progressed.

For Stuttgart, they’re in a bit of a balancing act. They want to extract as much money as possible for Mavropanos’ sale, and perhaps the January window is the time to do that, taking advantage of a panic buyer.

But losing the player early might mean relegation. Even worse, if he stays and they get relegated anyway, their negotiating position becomes significantly weaker for the summer.

For the time being, Mavropanos remains in Germany, where he’s made 14 appearances this season.