Arsenal will 'lead the way' for £20m Brazilian at the Emirates

Arsenal will ‘maintain their interest’ in Palmeiras star Danilo and a January move to the Emirates Stadium could be on the cards as the Gunners are confident that they ‘will lead the way for him next year’, according to transfer insider Dean Jones.

The Gunners parted with close to £120million during the summer window, but they were unable to get a deal for Danilo over the line ahead of Thursday’s 11pm deadline.

It is understood that Arsenal made a £20million bid for Danilo in the final days of the transfer window.

Gunners boss Mikel Arteta was looking to bolster his options in the middle of the park and considered bringing forward his interest as a result of injuries sustained by Mohamed Elneny and Thomas Partey.

However, Palmeiras managed to hold onto Danilo and were in a strong negotiating position thanks to his contract still having more than four years to run.

The 21-year-old reportedly has an £86.5million release clause written into his agreement with the Brazilian club and Arsenal would have had to smash their transfer record in order to meet that figure.

AC Milan also targeted Danilo during the early stages of the summer window, while French side Marseille have been monitoring his situation.

Jones is confident that Arsenal will keep Danilo on their radar despite being unable to strike a deal ahead of Thursday’s deadline.

The journalist believes the Gunners are optimistic of winning the race for the defensive midfielder’s services in 2023.

Jones told GIVEMESPORT: “I think we can expect Arsenal to maintain their interest in Danilo, who they had set as a top tier target heading into the summer window.

“There was a temptation to try for him because of their situation but he’s a young player in Brazil and they are