Sporting Lisbon defender William Carvalho has claimed he dreams of a move to the Premier League.

We reported before that the Gunners have great interest in the holding midfielder. It is noted the Gunners had a failed bid for the midfielder in the summer, in the region of £15million. Sporting Lisbon at that stage were looking nearly double that but now the fact he wishes to leave Lisbon, may mean the price will come down a little.

Carvalho’s agent, Jorge Mendes is apparently in the process of reopening talks between Arsenal and Sporting, with the Gunners looking to spend around £20million on the midfielder.

In a recent publication, Carvalho stated he has dreamt of playing in the Premier League and that he has his agent on the case to make his dream a reality:

'My dream is to play in England. I know some clubs are interested but my agent Jorge is looking after it and I am relaxed.”

He also noted that he will stay focused at the job in hand at Sporting for the meantime:

'Now my mission is to work in Sporting and they will be in charge of any transfer and my future. That is very important.' 

The Gunners are in need of a defensive midfielder with former Charlton loanee Francis Coquelin starting for the club at the moment. Although he has been impressive, he’s not top-quality and if Arsenal want to challenge for the title or go on a run in the Champions’ League after getting a good draw against Monaco, they need to toughen their defences a little. With Arteta being injured for a prolonged period and Flamini’s inconsistency, maybe Carvalho is just what Wenger has been looking for?

At only 22, Carvalho is carving out a name for himself in world football with Manchester United seemingly interested in his services.

The fact that Carvalho’s agent is now trying to get a deal on the table, means the Gunners’ chances of signing him have just increased hugely. Sporting will not want to keep a player who no longer wants to play for them; it’s bad for the team. And if the agent is kicking up a fuss, chances are, they will just let him go.

Stay tuned for updates on this story, no doubt it’s going to have a few twists and turns.