• Premier League

Gustavo keen to join Arsenal

Bayern Munich midfielder Luiz Gustavo says he needs to leave the club in search of first-team football and has opened the door to a move to Arsenal.

Arsenal have been linked with a £17 million bid for Gustavo as they look to bolster their midfield, though Wolfsburg are also hopeful of keeping the player in the Bundesliga. Dinamo Moscow have also shown an interest with a view to taking him to Russia.

Gustavo has fallen down the pecking order at Bayern and does not appear to be in the plans of new coach Pep Guardiola, having already only been second choice to Javi Martinez and Bastian Schweinsteiger last season.

After originally vowing to fight for his place in the Bayern team, he has now changed his mind and is looking for a new club.

Speaking in Basel, prior to Brazil's friendly against Switzerland, Gustavo told reporters: "My contract with Bayern runs until 2015, but it is very important that I play first-team football to keep getting called up for the national team.

"I have personal and professional reasons to move. I have heard about the Arsenal interest. It's a big club we're talking about here, so of course I'd like to play for them."

Wolfsburg, who had appeared to be leading the race for his signature early in the summer, have still not given up on landing Gustavo's signature.

Martin Winterkorn - the chairman of Wolfsburg owners Volkswagen and who is also on the board at Bayern - reiterated Wolfsburg's interest in the player after Bayern's friendly against Gyor on Sunday.

"I have not heard that Gustavo will join another club or that he will stay at Bayern. I think everything is possible," Wolfsburg general manager Klaus Allofs told Allgemeine Zeitung.

On Monday, Gustavo's agent Roger Wittmann travelled to London to discuss a potential move The Emirates before moving on to Moscow to negotiate with Dinamo officials, the paper reported.

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