Arsenal dealt blow in Rabiot pursuit as Juventus dig their heels

By Lee Connor

Arsenal have been dealt a blow in their pursuit of Juventus midfielder, Adrien Rabiot. 

The Gunners are keen on landing the 24-year-old midfielder in January. After signing from PSG in the summer, Rabiot has made just a handful of appearances for the Turin giants.

Juventus are holding firm over Rabiot, much to the frustration of Arsenal. (Photo by Marco Canoniero/LightRocket via Getty Images)

However, according to a new report from the Daily Mail, ‘The Old Lady’ are not yet willing to allow Rabiot to move on, denting Arsenal’s hopes of landing the Frenchman.

The original report, from Italian news outfit Sport Mediaset, claims Juve want to keep Rabiot as part of their squad.

Rabiot was one of the most in-demand midfielders in world football in the summer. However, after plenty of interest, he opted to sign for Juventus for nothing.

But with the Italian champions having a plethora of talent in their squad, Rabiot has found chances hard to come by.

Blow for Arteta

With Granit Xhaka looking almost certain to leave, a replacement is needed. New Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta, will have fancied his chances of landing Rabiot.

Arsenal want to sign Adrien Rabiot from Juventus. (Photo by Nicolò Campo/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Furthermore, Arsenal simply needs to add quality to the squad. Performances have not been good enough this season.

Rabiot was a star man for PSG previously, helping them to a number of Ligue 1 titles. Much like Arteta, Rabiot is a midfield player who can dictate games and likes to get on the ball.

TBR View

Juventus were never going to let Rabiot leave for nothing and without a fight. He’s simply too good a player for Arsenal to just rock up and take away from Turin.

But, he might yet end up in London. Juventus are always on the lookout for new talent and could yet sign in-demand striker, Erling Haaland.

That could, in turn, mean the club need to offload a few to balance the books. Arsenal, then, might just fall lucky with that move and eventually get their hands on Rabiot.