Melo happy to remain with Juventus

The Gunners' admiration for the Brazilian dates back to last summer when Arsenal fans were desperate to see manager Arsene Wenger add some steel to an otherwise lightweight midfield.

However, the 26-year-old Samba star opted to snub the North London side and sign for Juventus from Fiorentina.

With captain Cesc Fabregas expected to leave Emirates Stadium for Barcelona this summer, Melo - along with Barca enforcer Yaya Toure - is again being linked with a summer switch to Arsenal.

Melo - included in Brazil's squad for this summer's World Cup finals - endured a difficult first season with the Old Lady. But he insists he wants to stay with the Serie A side.

Speaking to tuttojuve.com, he said: "Juventus' season was negative and didn't go as well as expected, but my performances were good.

"I have heard about the interest of Arsenal, once again, but there is nothing concrete.

"The only certainty is that I still have a four-year contract with Juventus and Juventus fans have a great affection for me, so I want to win a title for them."

Melo's agent, meanwhile, has stated that the Gunners have yet to make a formal approach for the midfielder's services, and that nothing will be resolved until after the World Cup in South Africa.

“The situation is as follows. At the moment Felipe is happy at Juventus, and has a four-year deal. His mind at the moment is on only one thing – the World Cup," he told Sport.co.uk.

“Nobody from Arsenal has contacted me to ask me about Felipe’s situation. If Cesc [Fabregas] leaves Arsenal then the situation might change and they might talk to me about Felipe, but I don’t know what the future holds.

“For me, what the papers say is not important information. The only thing Felipe wants is to have a good World Cup and be a champion this summer."

By Owen Edwards

Follow FFT.com on Twitter
Join FFT.com on Facebook

Gregg Davies

Gregg Davies is the Chief Sub Editor of FourFourTwo magazine, joining the team in January 2008 and spending seven years working on the website. He supports non-league behemoths Hereford and commentates on Bulls matches for Radio Hereford FC. His passions include chocolate hobnobs and attempting to shoehorn Ronnie Radford into any office conversation.