Robin van Persie continues to be at the forefront of transfer speculation today, with both Manchester City and Juventus commenting on the Arsenal star, as Manchester United continue to chase.

Van Persie revealed that he wanted to leave the Gunners last month, sighting the fact that he disagreed with the club's direction as his main motivation.

Arsenal have since insisted that they want to keep the star for the final year of his contract, though with United, City and Juventus all circling, it seems a matter of time before the striker heads elsewhere.

It would appear favourable to Arsene Wenger to send van Persie to Italy so that he doesn't have to compete against one of his top players on a weekly basis, but United and City have both reportedly offered more money, and are making the situation particularly difficult for the Gunners.

But now Juventus have given a hint as to how negotiations are going, with director Giuseppe Marotta telling Sky Sports that the north London club are driving a hard bargain.

Of van Persie's transfer he said: "It is difficult to say this at this moment because he is an Arsenal player and he is not our player.

"We know that Van Persie is a fantastic striker, but we have four strikers and with these strikers we won the Championship last year. Van Persie is a great player but Arsenal do not intend to lose him. And you cannot indulge in a player if the owners don't want [to sell].

"Talk of our real interest in him seems excessive to me."

Robin van Persie
Robin van Persie looks set to leave Arsenal, but will he go to Manchester United, Manchester City or Juventus?

Meanwhile, City manager Roberto Mancini has admitted that he likes the look of van Persie, but won't comment on whether negotiations have developed any further for the Dutchman.

"We know that Van Persie is a fantastic striker, but we have four strikers and with these strikers we won the Championship last year," he explained.

"But still, Van Persie is a top player. We can say different things about this - but he is an Arsenal player."

With United still said to be interested, Sir Alex Ferguson is remaining the most tight-lipped of the three clubs after confirming that he is chasing the star.

But with Arsenal continually insisting that they won't sell van Persie on the cheap, United will struggle after making a lower bid than their cross-town rivals so far, reports have claimed.

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