Arsenal make January transfer decision over midfielder lined up for Bosman deal

Arsenal will reject January offers for Jorginho and plan to keep him at the club until at least the end of the season.

The Italian international midfielder is expected to leave the Emirates Stadium on a free transfer next summer when his contract expires, but until then he will remain an important part of Mikel Arteta's dressing room.

Turkish giants Besiktas have long been interested in the 32-year-old after first making contact with their representatives in January, a year after Jorginho completed his £12 million move to London from Chelsea.

But the former Napoli maestro had no intention of leaving the Gunners and signed a one-year contract extension four months later.

However, he has only started three times in the Premier League this season, including Saturday's 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest, and while he accepted opportunities would not come as often this season, he still looks ready to start the season with Arsenal to complete. before assessing his options.

Besiktas are said to be interested in signing the Italian to a Bosman and could formally open a dialogue with the Euro 2020 winner in 2025 as he enters the final six months of his current contract.

But even if the Turkish giants or other suitors make an offer this winter, Arsenal have little interest in a mid-season sell-out.

Arteta has already suffered a series of injuries this season and the Spaniard wants to strengthen, not weaken, his squad this winter.

The chances of Jorginho getting another deal in North London look slim at the moment, although his experience and character are still of clear value and importance.

Earlier this month, Arteta indicated he was keen to keep Thomas Partey – who is also out of contract in June next year – following his drastic improvement in form.

The Arsenal boss said: “He's only 31 and he's in a really good place… we'll have conversations. All we needed was for Thomas to be at the level we wanted. He works so hard to do what he does.” at this time.”

The midfield is an area expected to be addressed in the coming transfer windows and the Gunners are also poised to strengthen in attack, where a new top number 9 has long been desired.