Arsenal REJECT bids from Premier League rivals for Emile Smith Rowe as Gunners hold firm on price tag
ARSENAL have turned down bids from Crystal Palace and Fulham for Emile Smith Rowe.
The Gunners midfielder is desperate for first team football next season after injury and differing form saw him make just 13 Premier League appearances last season.
SunSport understands that should an offer come in that suits BOTH the player and the club, then the 23-year-old will be allowed to leave the Emirates this summer.
Smith Rowe is a boyhood Arsenal fan who joined their academy aged 10.
He still has two years left on his current contract.
Arsenal will wait to see if Palace or Fulham come back with better offers.
The North Londoners value Smith Rowe between £25m and £30m.
As well as being a fan favourite, he is deeply admired by boss Mikel Arteta after shining on the pitch during his early days in charge of the club.
As a result, there is mutual respect.
That means that neither Arteta nor the club will stand in Smith Rowe’s way if he feels it is time for a change of scenery.
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Elsewhere, Nuno Tavares has joined Serie A side Lazio on a season-long loan.
That deal also comes with a conditional obligation to buy for £7m.
They also have a sell-on in excess of 25 per cent after buying the full-back, 24, from Benfica for around £7m, essentially getting their money back.
Tavares is not in Arteta’s plans after spending the last two seasons on loan at Marseille and Nottingham Forest.
But the latter turned down a £12m option to buy him permanently.
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