Arsenal's £24m Bid for Manchester United Midfield Target William Carvalho Rejected by Sporting

Arsenal's surprise bid for Manchester United summer target William Carvalho has been rejected by Sporting Lisbon.

The 22-year-old has long been a transfer target for the Red Devils as they have scouted him on numerous occasions last season. United are keen on adding the Portuguese international, who has a £35m release clause in his contract, to their midfield.

According to the Portuguese newspaper O Jogo, the Gunners made a bid of £24m, which has been turned down by Sporting as it does not meet their valuation for the star player. Carvalho was with the Portugal squad for the World Cup, where they were knocked out of the tournament in the group stages.

Arsene Wenger was also in Brazil as a football pundit and the Frenchman has closely watched Carvalho in action for his national side. The Arsenal manager is believed to be an admirer of the talented player and is looking to sign the defensive midfielder to strengthen the Gunners' squad.

The north London club have long been interested in signing Germany's World Cup winning midfielder Sami Khedira. However, the Mirror reports that there has been a breakdown of talks with Real Madrid for the sale of their midfielder.

Khedira's transfer blow has forced Wenger to look elsewhere in the transfer market. The French manager has set his sights on the Portugal midfielder. The Mirror also claims Carvalho is keen on leaving his current employers in order to make a switch to the Emirates in the summer transfer window.

Carvalho's contract at Sporting runs down in 2018 and earlier in May, the midfielder admitted that his future is with the Portuguese club. However, in June, the player hinted that he could leave his current employers this summer, giving hope to potential suitors.

"Will I stay at Sporting? I don't know. I'm going back to Portugal and then we'll see," Sky Sports quoted Carvalho as saying.

Arsenal have Mikel Arteta and Abou Diaby in the defensive midfield position. The latter has failed to feature regularly as he has spent more time on the treatment table due to his ongoing injury. A move for Carvalho is likely to bolster the Gunners' midfield.