Arsenal In Battle With Chelsea, Aston Villa, Juventus & Lyon For Transfer Of Fiorentina and Brazil Midfield Enforcer Felipe Melo

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is monitoring the performances of Brazil’s defensive midfielder Felipe Melo during the Confederations Cup in South Africa before he is expected to make a bid for the Fiorentina star.

Melo, who is known for his robust style of play, having collected 17 yellow and 3 red cards in his first season in Serie A, is just the kind of player Cesc Fabregas has begged his manager to bring to The Emirates to add some midfield steel to the Arsenal team.

Melo joined Fiorentina from Spanish outfit Almeria last summer and immediately endeared himself to the fans of the Viola with a string of impressive performances, resulting in a call-up by Seleção boss Carlos Dunga to the full Brazil national side. He has already chalked-up eight appearances for Brazil this year, with three goals, and is now regarded as the long-term successor to the former Arsenal player Gilberto Silva.

It is understood that the 25 year-old has a buy-out clause of over €20 million at Fiorentina, but with Melo interesting Chelsea, Aston Villa, Juventus and Lyon, as well as Arsenal, the fee shouldn’t be an issue.

However, whether the Brazil star is prepared to leave Fiorentina may be another matter, having expressed satisfaction with life in Italy when he commented recently on the transfer speculation: “It's clear that interest from big clubs makes me happy because it shows I have worked well," said Melo. "But I would like to once again confirm that I am very well in Florence and have a great relationship with my team-mates, the club and the fans."