Torino chief Davide Vagnati has played down rumours Lucas Torreira could be set to join the club, with Arsenal holding out for a permanent transfer rather than a loan deal this summer.
Torreira, 24, is deemed surplus to requirements at the Emirates after failing to make an impact under new head coach Mikel Arteta and the Gunners have been in talks with Torino and AC Milan to discuss a possible agreement before next month’s transfer deadline.
Milan are understood to be at the front of the queue for Torreira while Torino have been battling hard for the midfielder’s signature, with Marco Giampaolo – who managed him at Sampdoria – keen for a reunion in Turin.
However, Torino have cleared the path for Milan to sign Torreira after the club’s sporting director, Vagnati, confirmed on Saturday that Arsenal were not interested in a temporary move for the Uruguay international – and that their asking price to sign him permanently was ‘too high’.
‘Torreira is a top player but his price is too high,’ he said.
‘It’s difficult to sign him from Arsenal, not just for us.’
‘No, we don’t have any updates on Lucas or any other player at the moment,’ the Spaniard said.
Asked about Arsenal’s links with Jorginho, Arteta responded: ‘We are still open to improving our team.
‘We are looking for different options depending on what happens with some of our players here so we are getting prepared just in case we need to do something.’
