West Bromwich Albion have told their defender Jonny Evans that he will not be leaving the club this summer.
The 28-year-old has been linked with a move to Arsenal but there has been no official bid from the London club and reports of West Brom demanding £25m for the Northern Irishman are wide of the mark.
Arsenal are looking to sign a centre-back after an injury to Per Mertesacker but Arsène Wenger has been frustrated in his search so far. Discussions are ongoing with Valencia regarding a deal for Shkodran Mustafi but the Spanish side’s manager, Pako Ayesterán, said on Monday that the German centre-back will not be leaving the club this transfer window.
The West Brom manager, Tony Pulis, said on Friday, before that 2-1 defeat to Everton, that he was desperate to keep hold of Evans.
“You don’t want to lose your best players, but in football sometimes that happens,” he said. “If it does happen, you need to make sure you know where your replacements are. If Arsenal come in for Jonny, if we do any business we’ll do it between the clubs. I wouldn’t talk here about doing a deal with Arsenal or anybody else.
“The most important thing is that Jonny is with us and we want him to stay because he’s an outstanding player. Against Crystal Palace, whether it was Townsend or Zaha, and it’s not Jonny’s favourite position playing as a full-back, he was most probably our best player on the pitch.”