Arsenal and Chelsea in £32m battle for Serie A centre-back

Arsenal and Chelsea are reportedly both interested in signing Netherlands international Stefan De Vrij, according to Repubblica.

The Premier League duo, who currently sit fourth and second in the English top-flight standings respectively after their opening 11 league fixtures, are understood to be keeping a close eye on the defender’s contract talks with Lazio.

The 24-year-old, who has 30 international caps for his country, has scored one goal in eight appearances in all competitions for the Serie A outfit so far this season.

Arsenal boss, Arsene Wenger – Photo: Marc Atkins / Offside.

The report suggests that Lazio have offered a bumper new deal to the centre-back, in a bid to ward off potential suitors, but it seems no concrete agreement is in the pipeline, alerting both the Gunners and the Blues to his availability ahead of the forthcoming January transfer window.

This is despite the club willing to make De Vrij their highest paid player on around £1.8m per year, including a buyout clause of £32m for interested clubs abroad.