Arsenal Plot £15m Bid For Man Utd Target After Rejecting Ivory Coast Ace

With the January transfer window coming to a close, managers are frantically trying to tie-up those late deals and strengthen their squads ahead of the second half of the season, so we’ll bring you all the latest news and gossip. Today, Arsenal are linked with Morgan Schneiderlin….

Arsenal will make a £15m bid for Manchester United target Morgan Schneiderlin at the end of the season after rejecting the chance to sign Cheick Tiote this month, according to reports.

Schneiderlin has been in superb form for Southampton over the past 18 months and has played a key role in helping the South Coast club maintain their push for a shock finish in the top four this season.

Arsenal have been strongly linked with a move for the 25-year-old in recent weeks with Arsene Wenger continuing his interest from last summer, while reports have also suggested that Manchester United are keen on the French international with Louis van Gaal on the look out for a long-term replacement for Michael Carrick.

However, while both clubs acknowledge that Southampton wont sell in the winter window, it appears the Gunners are already planning ahead for the summer as the Metro are reporting that Arsenal will make a £15m bid for Schneiderlin as soon as the season is over.

The news comes as the Daily Mail claim that Arsenal have turned down the chance to sign Newcastle midfielder Cheick Tiote for £12m this month, as Wenger would prefer to hold out until the summer to land his top targets.

This ties in with what the Metro are saying, as they believe that Wenger’s No.1 option for the defensive midfield role is Schneiderlin and he’ll make a real push to land his fellow countryman at the end of the season.

It remains to be seen whether Man Utd will also formalise their interest in the midfielder this summer, but it’s clear that Southampton are going to find it extremely difficult to hang on to Schneiderlin over the long term.

Ronald Koeman will be praying he can somehow hang on to a top four finish as Champions League qualification is probably the only thing that could tempt Schneiderlin to remain at St Mary’s. Even then, he may decide to leave as the likes of Arsenal and United will offer his far higher wages than Southampton will be able to put on the table.

READ MORE –> Arsenal transfer news | Man Utd transfer news

It’s going to be interesting to see where Schneiderlin ends up if he does leave the Saints but whoever wins the race for his signature will be getting one of the best holding midfielders in the Premier League.