Report: Arsenal’s £40m bid for defender Ben White rejected

Arsenal have had a big offer of £40m for Brighton defender Ben White rejected. The two clubs are locked in negotiations and Sky Sports reports that Arsenal are expected to make a second offer.

Arteta is eager to sign a central defender despite having a number of options at his disposal and could make the England international their most expensive defender ever.

Brighton reportedly want £50m for the highly rated 23-year-old who made 36 Premier League appearances this season after spending the 2019-20 season on loan at Leeds.

White is a versatile defender capable of playing as a defensive midfielder as well as a right-back and has been described as a mixture of an old-school centre-half and the modern-day centre-back.

This offer is quite surprising to many fans given Arsenal’s tight transfer budget, a £40m bid was anticipated to be for a central or attacking midfield rather than a centre-back.