Takehiro Tomiyasu hasn’t been offered up for sale and he remains part of Arsenal’s plans for the season, according to a report.

In recent days, reports have linked Takehiro Tomiyasu with a potential Arsenal exit, with claims of interest from Inter Milan and suggestions that the Gunners could be willing to sell.

But Fabrizio Romano reports that Tomiyasu hasn’t been offered to any Italian club this summer, and he’s still part of Arsenal’s plans for the future.

That situation won’t change unless Arsenal sign a new full-back, and nothing is close or advanced on that front.

On the surface, it does seem like Tomiyasu’s potential for regular minutes this season hasn’t been helped by the addition of Jurrien Timber.

Mikel Arteta already seems to favour Ben White as his starting right-back, and Timber is a very strong alternative.

Tomiyasu is surely ahead of Cedric Soares in the pecking order, but there’s certainly a lot of competition at right-back at the moment.

But the situation isn’t that simple. As it stands, Timber is being used more often at left-back, and we know Tomiyasu can also operate on the left or as a centre-back.

Rather than simply being a third-choice right-back, Tomiyasu is effectively a flexible backup for three different positions, making it far more likely he ends up in the team on a regular basis.

From an Arsenal point of view, having a versatile backup like that is very important, as we saw when the squad was a bit short at the back last season.

Selling Tomiyasu right now wouldn’t be advisable, and it doesn’t appear that the Gunners plan to do so.