Back to the Arsenal Newsfeed

Roma face a major battle to sign Chris Smalling and Henrikh Mkhitaryan - only Champions League qualification will stop a Manchester United reunion for the defender while Arsenal must be convinced to sell up for just £8.5m

Roma's plans for the next transfer window are based mainly around Arsenal's Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Manchester United's Chris Smalling.

The duo are wanted by Roma chief-executive Gianluca Petrachi. But Smalling is waiting to see if the club reaches the Champions League and is unlikely to remain in Rome without the possibility of playing in Europe's elite competition.

Smalling is perfectly settled in the Italian capital and before the Coronavirus outbreak indefinitely halted everyday life, he was a frequent visitor to Roman parks, museums and restaurants.

Chris Smalling appears to prefer returning to Manchester United after his Roma loan
Henrikh Mkhitaryan, meanwhile, wants to join Roma permanently and would take a pay cut

But Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants to bring him back to the Premier League and if both Roma and United both fail to qualify for the Champions League, then Smalling's preference would be a return to England.