Stevan Jovetic has been heavily tipped to leave Italian outfit, Fiorentina this summer, with Arsene Wenger showing considerable interest in the forward. The 23-year-old has scored 12 goals in all competitions this season, but with Fiorentina missing out on a Champions League spot for next season; it seems his time is up at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.

Wenger is lining up an offer to bring the marksman to London, and has reportedly already held discussions with the player’s representative. However, he will have to pay some big money to land his number one transfer target, with the Italian club unwilling to lower their asking price for Jovetic.

Fiorentina have told Arsenal that nothing less than £25 million will let them part ways with their striker, but the Gunners are baulking at that price. Their highest transfer fee stands at a modest £15 million paid in February 2009 for the services of Andrei Ashravin.

With the likely sales of Bendtner, Chamakh and Gervinho, Wenger wants to bring in reinforcements to add depth in the striking department. Jovetic has been on his radar for quite a few months, but he will have to break the bank to acquire his services.

The report suggests that Wenger believes the player is valued at no more than £20 million and is refusing to meet Fiorentina’s valuation of the player. It can be noted that Wenger waited one full year before he acquired Chamakh for free, since he did not agree with Bordeaux’s asking price for the French international.

However, it remains unclear whether the Frenchman can successfully employ such a wait-and-see policy, since many European clubs are monitoring Jovetic. Also, Wenger really needs to make some big singings in order to inject belief in his squad so that they can challenge for top honours next season.

Fiorentina hope to start a bidding war between Arsenal and Italian champions Juventus, who are also interested in the player. According to Dailymail, club president Della Valle reiterated his desire not to sell Jovetic on the cheap and said, “It is unlikely he will stay. Stevan has to figure out what he wants for the future. If he is to choose something else, then it’s important we are compensated.”