Arsenal Transfer News: Lorenzo Insigne Offer Reported, Latest Gunners Rumours

The agent of Napoli forward Lorenzo Insigne has revealed there were transfer offers from England for his client, fuelling rumours Arsenal were determined to bring the Italy international to the Emirates Stadium this summer.

As reported by Italian website Calciomercato.com (h/t Metro's Will Giles), Fabio Andreotti confirmed several Premier League clubs showed an interest in his client while ruling out a bid from Wolfsburg: “I read that Wolfsburg liked him but there was nothing concrete. Unlike some real offers from England.”

Calciomercato believes the Gunners are among the teams that registered an offer.

The 24-year-old has been with Napoli since his youth days and is regarded as one of the most talented but frustrating players in Serie A. Fans have been waiting for Insigne to establish himself as the next great Italian attacker since a wonderful breakout campaign in 2012-13, where he scored five goals and added seven assists in Serie A, per WhoScored.com.

He was unable to build on that remarkable year in the following seasons, always flashing his potential but never fully delivering. But just a few matches into the 2015-16 season, it looks like things could be different this year:

Insigne has looked more incisive and controlled in 2015-16, less focused on making his marker look silly and more on actually contributing in front of goal. The results have been wonderful. Combining with the likes of Dries Mertens and Marek Hamsik, he's part of one of the most dangerous and underrated groups of attacking players in Europe.

Per David Swan of Football Italia, Insigne's strong performances so far have come down to himself, however, and not the help from his team-mates:

He has mainly played as a left-winger or attacking midfielder this season, and while his positional versatility is impressive, as he's played just about all over Napoli's attack during his career, those two spots are certainly his best on the pitch.

That would immediately pose a problem in the event of a move to the Emirates. Mesut Ozil is one of the Premier League's best pure passers, and in order to make full use of his abilities, he needs to play in the centre. Meanwhile, Alexis Sanchez is at his best cutting inside from the left wing, similar to Insigne at Napoli.

As good as Insigne is―and he really is a talented player―he doesn't seem like a particularly good fit for Arsene Wenger's squad. He's a legend in Naples, where he came up through Napoli's youth system, and it's unlikely he'll leave the Partenopei for any fee that doesn't blow the club's mind.

Those kinds of fees are reserved for obvious starters, and that's something Insigne would not be with Arsenal. The Gunners may well have made an offer for his services, but and actual move seems unlikely.

The same goes for Theo Walcott, who has been a popular topic of discussion for the Spanish press the last couple of days. German newspaper Sport Bild (h/t Manolete of AS) even claims the England international is keen on a move to Barcelona, but Sky Sports Guillem Balague doesn't see it happening:

"

Walcott to Barcelona? Nahhh. It hasn't even been mentioned in the press conference.

— Guillem Balague (@GuillemBalague) September 22, 2015"

Barcelona's reported interest in Walcott became a thing in the wake of the injury to Rafinha, but the rumour never really made any sense. The 26-year-old is a regular contributor for the Gunners, but at the Camp Nou, he would be no more than a backup behind the likes of Neymar and Lionel Messi.

As a result, Arsenal wouldn't consider selling unless the offer was substantial―far too much for a player who would provide Barcelona with depth and little else.

Celta Vigo's Nolito, a former Barcelona player, is a far more logical target, and he has already confirmed he'd be open to a move back to Catalunya, per Radio Marca (h/t Goal).

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