Exclusive: Fabrizio Romano hints at opportunity for Arsenal to beat Bayern to Premier League transfer raid

Bayern Munich will not be signing Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha this January, according to the latest updates from trusted transfer news guru Fabrizio Romano.

The Portugal international has been hugely impressive during his time in the Premier League with Fulham, and Romano has once again looked into his situation after he came close to leaving Fulham for Bayern in the summer.

Speaking to CaughtOffside for his exclusive Daily Briefing column, Romano explained that Palhinha is now considered too expensive for Bayern, who are instead focusing on other targets for this January.

Romano went on to say that we’ll now have to see if this means another English club try to sign Palhinha instead, which follows on from him previously telling CaughtOffside that Arsenal are admirers of the 28-year-old.

If Bayern are no longer in the running, this could be an opportunity for Arsenal, who would do well to strengthen their midfield as Thomas Partey has proven so injury-prone in recent times.

Discussing Palhinha’s situation, Romano said: “Joao Palhinha will not join Bayern Munich in the January transfer window. We know he was almost a Bayern player on deadline day in the summer before the deal collapsed – Bayern decided to keep following the player because they still like and appreciate Palhinha. However, now the deal will not happen because he is considered too expensive.

“Bayern are clear – they have no intention to pay €75-80m for Palhinha, and that is what Fulham want for the Portuguese midfielder after he signed a new deal in the summer. Nothing is happening in January for Palhinha to Bayern, who have instead signed Eric Dier, and now their focus is on signing a new right-back.

“For Palhinha, let’s see if the situation can change with an