Sheffield United: Arsenal target Aaron Ramsdale convinces Blades not to relax their transfer demands

The Star understands Ramsdale has been the subject of two unofficial bids from Mikel Arteta’s side with the second, which was submitted via an intermediary acting on the Basque’s behalf, thought to be worth around £30m.

That falls £10m short of the valuation United placed on the 23-year-old’s shoulders when it emerged Arteta is serious about taking him to north London. Bramall Lane’s hierarchy believe that figure reflects both Ramsdale’s potential and his prowess right now, after Gareth Southgate drafted him into the England squad which reached the final of the recent European Championships.

Slavisa Jokanovic, the United manager, has decided to keep his distance from the South Yorkshire club’s transfer dealings in order to focus on footballing matters instead.

But the Serb, who took charge on July 1st, is thought to have spoken with Ramsdale about the situation when he returned to training at the Steelphalt Academy on Monday. The outcome of those informal talks persuaded Jokanovic to select Ramsdale in his starting eleven for Wednesday evening’s friendly against Doncaster Rovers.

After failing to lure United to the negotiating table, Arsenal are expected to submit a third offer shortly. That could include an invitation for Jokanovic to select some of their most promising young players for loan moves, after United revealed they will be focusing on temporary transfers after being relegated from the Premier League last term.