Arsenal Transfer News: Latest Rumours on Kylian Mbappe and Jamie Vardy

Arsenal will battle Barcelona and Real Madrid to sign Monaco teenage wonder Kylian Mbappe, while former target Jamie Vardy of Leicester City has explained he turned down the chance of joining the Gunners due to tactical concerns.

According to Calciomercato (h/t talkSPORT), Arsene Wenger will challenge the Spanish giants for the 17-year-old who "has been likened to Thierry Henry." Manchester City had been linked with a big-money move for the prodigy but were discouraged due to Monaco's £35 million valuation.

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Mbappe's qualities have brought him to the attention of a number of clubs, but the player's stylistic qualities—comparable to Henry—could see Arsenal convinced to make the young Frenchman their next superstar.

Mbappe has three years to run on his current contract with Les Rouges et Blancs but is yet to hold fresh talks over an extension, per talkSPORT.

Here is the attacker in action for Monaco:

Vardy has spoken out about turning down the chance to join the Gunners, admitting their playing style would not benefit his game if he had made the switch to north London.

The Sun serialised the striker's official autobiography, and the Premier League winner admitted why he opted to stay in the east Midlands.

Vardy said he looked at schools for his children in the local area as he prepared for the switch to the capital, but he decided his career would benefit by rejecting Arsenal.

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Vardy wrote:

"

With people like Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil creating chances, Arsenal felt they could benefit me as much as I could them.

But I also thought about the tactical aspect.

You look at Arsenal’s style of play and they don’t get the ball forward quickly in the same way Leicester do for those runs I like to make in behind the defence.

One thing that didn’t worry me was the idea that I wouldn’t be the "main man" at Arsenal.

Every time I’ve moved, I’ve managed to meet the challenge in front of me.

We even looked at new schools for the children, but I got to the stage where I felt with my heart and head that I wanted to stay at Leicester.

It wasn’t to do with "loyalty" or how I feel about my team-mates.

"

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Vardy's current form has not matched his efforts from last term as the Foxes have struggled in the early weeks of their title defence.

The 29-year-old bagged 36 goals in the Premier League last season, according to WhoScored.com, as Leicester romped to a shock championship—and the England player would have given Wenger a fresh weapon in his attack.

However, it is debatable whether Vardy has the technique to comfortably fit into Arsenal's philosophy, and the goals might have dried up as the pressure increased on the former Fleetwood Town star.

Arsenal do need a primary striker in their squad, but Gunners fans would rather receive a cultured player from the continent, instead of buying a striker who needs more direct service over the top.