Arsenal have “spoken” to the agents of Fluminense midfielder Andre, according to 90min.com.

A whole host of clubs are said to be interested in signing the 21-year-old, who made his senior debut for Brazil against Senegal in a 4-2 friendly defeat in June.

Liverpool, Tottenham, West Ham, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid have also made enquiries about the player but it is believed that Fulham are the likeliest team to make a formal offer at this stage.

90min reports that the Cottagers made an attempt to recruit the 21-year-old in January, only for the deal to fall through, but they are expected to revive their interest in the coming days and weeks.

Fluminense are demanding a fee in the region of £25m for Andre, so we shall see if the Gunners are tempted to make a move of their own in order to reinforce their midfield options.

A potential replacement for Partey?

With reports suggesting that Thomas Partey could leave the Emirates this summer, the club are likely to be scouring the market for reinforcements.

Even with Declan Rice joining the Gunners, the feeling is that another holding midfielder may be needed, especially with Albert Sambi Lokonga set to move before the transfer window closes as well.

Andre is someone who would be comfortable playing in the Partey role. For Fluminense, he is tasked with breaking up play and that is demonstrated by the fact that he has picked up eight yellow cards and two reds so far this season.

He doesn’t have the physicality that Partey possesses, though, standing only at 5ft 9, so he would probably be more of a Lucas Torreira, snapping at opponent’s heels and trying to win back the ball.

Arsenal may be working on a tight budget

After splashing out over £200m on three players, Mikel Arteta’s side may not have much room for manoeuvre when it comes to spending big on another midfield player.

If they can get a sizeable amount for Partey from a Saudi Arabian club, that could change things and it would allow them to go after someone like Southampton’s Romeo Lavia (who may cost £50m).

Alternatively, if money remains tight, going into the Brazilian market where prices are cheaper, could be a solution, especially as Edu has strong contacts in that country. Arsenal have been heavily linked with Gremio’s Bitello recently and it seems Andre is another name to look out for.