First bid lodged for centre-back wanted by Arsenal, Tottenham

Lyon have made a £16million bid for Joachim Andersen, according to reports.

The Sampdoria centre-back is understood to be a target for Arsenal and Tottenham, but they will have to move fast after the Ligue 1 club made their first move.

Sampdoria have turned down the offer, according to the Daily Star with defender rated in the £30million bracket.

Both Arsenal and Tottenham have had scouts watching the 23-year-old defender, while AC Milan are also interested, along with Manchester United.

At the start of the month Tuttosport reported that Arsenal had launched a €42million bid to try and sign  Andersen and his team-mate Dennis Praet this summer.

The Star claim that has been ‘rubbished’, but the former Twente man does look like moving on after recently admitting there was interest in him.

“It could be time for me to further my career,” he told Goal. “I have loved my time in Sampdoria – the fans, the president, the staff, the players, the city – but maybe it’s time to move on to develop further.

“There are a number of interested clubs from Europe’s biggest leagues who are discussing with my agent and I’ll be making a decision shortly together with my family and my agent.

Samp boss Marco Giampaolo left the Genoa-based club for Milan this week and he is apparently keen on taking Andersen with him, although his price tag may force the Rossoneri to look elsewhere.