Arsenal and Manchester United target William Carvalho tipped for Premier League move

Arsenal and Manchester United face an anxious wait to discover whether they have been successful in their attempts to sign Sporting Lisbon midfielder William Carvalho after manager Marco Silva confirmed a decision over the player's future will be made in January.

Both Premier League giants have been heavily linked with a move for the Portugal international who came through the Sporting youth system before becoming one of Europe's hottest prospects.

Though interest in Carvalho has never been substantiated by either Arsenal or United, manager Silva has said offers have been submitted for the 22 year old and a decision over his future could be made in the next three weeks.

Speaking ahead of the Champions League group game against Chelsea, Silva said: "William is a target for English teams, but I want him to play his game.

"He's not playing at the same level as last season because last season he was a surprise, but he's improving. William has many offers. Let's wait till January."

Amid the news surrounding Carvalho's future, both Arsenal and United have been heavily linked with players in the upcoming January transfer window, though significant strengthening may not be made in the youngster's favoured defensive midfield role.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger's primary objective during the summer is likely to surrounding attempting to improve his back-four after losing each of his six senior defenders at some stage during the opening four months of the campaign.

Meanwhile, United boss Louis van Gaal will not centre his attention on signing defenders despite an injury crisis having hit the club this season and after spending in excess of £150m during the summer, he is expected to refrain from significant additions.

After the 2-1 win over Southampton, the Dutch coach said: "When you have injuries you cannot solve the problem otherwise. Do we have to buy players? No. We have more than enough."