Arsenal transfer rumour: Gunners enquire about €30m-rated AS Roma defender Alessio Romagnoli

Arsenal are considering a move to sign AS Roma defender Alessio Romagnoli, according to Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport.

The 20-year-old came up through the ranks of the club's youth setup before breaking into the first team in 2012. However, lack of opportunities forced him to join Sampdoria on loan last season, with an option to sign him on a permanent transfer.

However, they decided against signing him, which saw Romagnoli return to Rome. His form for Sampdoria has attracted interest from the Gunners. The north London club have already enquired with the Serie A outfit over the availability of their player in this transfer window.

Roma landed in Australia for the pre-season tour, where they will face the likes of Real Madrid in the International Champions Cup. The Italy Under-20 international has travelled with the squad to Down Under.

The Italian outfit value the player around €30m (£20.9m, $32.7m) and interested clubs need to match their asking price, if they look to sign Romagnoli. The same report also claims Roma's league rivals AC Milan are in the hunt for the defender.

According to ESPN, Milan made a €25m (£17.4m, $27.2m) bid for Romagnoli, which was turned down by Roma. Milan general manager Adriano Galliani revealed they were considering other options after Roma refused to negotiate.

"Our offer for Romagnoli is unmodifiable. We are not changing our offer and if Roma accept it then fine, otherwise we will evaluate other options," Galliani told the Ansa news agency.

Another report from Gazzetta dello Sport suggests Romagnoli's style of play has seen him being dubbed as the "new Alessandro Nesta". Despite that, Milan manager Sinisa Mihajlovic admitted Roma were demanding a heavy price tag for their player.

"I like strawberries too but they shouldn't cost as much as oysters -- €25m is a lot of money for a player who is still young and could potentially be great," Mihajlovic explained.

"The club will do all we can to get him and I'm optimistic, but the transfer window is open for a long time and we've got to wait to see how the club can strengthen us."

With Milan refusing to meet Roma's asking price, Arsenal could secure the services of the Roma defender this summer.