Arsenal have renewed their efforts to complete a deal for Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa, in a move that underlines manager Mikel Arteta's desire to strengthen his backline before the start of the new season.
The BBC revealed that the London club held a fresh round of talks over the past few days, showing a willingness to improve their initial offer of around 30 million pounds for the England international.
The gap between the two parties remains wide. Aston Villa are holding firm on their demand of 60 million pounds to part with their defender, and show no intention of accepting a lower figure.
Still on holiday after the World Cup, Konsa, 28, is Arteta's preferred defensive target thanks to his ability to play in more than one position at the back.
Arsenal turned their focus fully towards bolstering the backline after wrapping up the signing of Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle.
Multiple sources confirmed to BBC Sport that Arsenal also held exploratory talks with Tottenham over the possibility of signing their captain Cristian Romero, before he reached an agreement with Atletico Madrid.
Konsa played 48 matches across all competitions last season with Aston Villa, winning the Europa League title with them.