Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is planning a £20 million bid in the January transfer window to finally try and sign William Carvalho from Sporting Lisbon.
Carvalho was heavily linked with a move to Arsenal in the summer transfer window gone by, but Wenger could not come to an agreement over a fee with Sporting.
However, the Arsenal manager is ready to go back in for the defensive midfielder in January, with Wenger confident £20 million will do the trick, according to the Daily Mail.
Sporting had demanded somewhere in the region of £37 million for Carvalho in the summer, with Arsenal only making an offer of around £15 million.
The Portuguese club, though, have softened their stance on the midfielder, owing to the fact that they have been knocked out of the Champions League in the group stages.
It remains to be seen if £20 million will be enough, considering the astronomical fees they were asking for a few months ago, but the one thing that is certain is that Arsenal could use a player like Carvalho.
A strong presence in midfield, someone who knows how to move the ball while making those key tackles and interceptions has been sorely missed by Arsenal.
Carvalho could quite easily do a Nemanja Matic, who has been pivotal to Chelsea's fortunes since moving from Benfica last January, and become that midfield presence that just gives Arsenal that something more.
However, deals for such players are never easy or inexpensive, and Wenger will need to whip out that cheque book to ensure the move goes through, because Carvalho is expected to be made available by Sporting Lisbon in January.
Wenger is also looking to sign a central defender next month, and Carvalho, who will be cup-tied in the Champions League if he does make his way to the Emirates, has the ability to play as a centre-back as well, something that will, no doubt, please the Arsenal manager.
However, buying a player who can fill in at two positions is fraught with danger, and buying a central defender along with someone like a Carvalho or a Morgan Schneiderlin will be paramount.
