Lucas Torreira called Arsenal "one of the most important clubs in the world", but refused to confirm if he has signed a deal at the Emirates. The Arsenal target came off the bench during Uruguay's 1-0 victory over Saudi Arabia, and after the game faced questions about his future, following comments by Sampdoria president Massimo Ferrero that Torreira had "left" the club. "No, I don't know [if he is an Arsenal player]," Torreira said. "At the moment, the most important thing is playing for my country. "Arsenal are a good team, one of the most important in the world, but at this moment I am focused on playing for my country." Torreira, who has yet to start for Uruguay in their two Group A wins in Russia, is seen as one of the rising stars of the national side. Sky Italy reported last week that the Gunners had offered £26.4m (30m euro) in instalments for the 22-year-old, rather than paying his £22m release clause up front. Image: Torreira has been a regular for Sampdoria the past two seasons Torreira has made 74 appearances for Sampdoria since joining the Serie A side in 2015, and would become Unai Emery's third signing of the summer should he put pen to paper.<doc-sep>Arsenal are seemingly on the verge of signing midfielder Lucas Torreira after Sampdoria president Massimo Ferrero confirmed the player had “left” the Seria A side. Torreira, 22, is seen as one of Serie A’s most talented young midfielders, a modern playmaker who can win the ball back as well as distribute it, something missing from Arsenal’s play in recent seasons as Granit Xhaka continues to flatter to deceive. He will be the latest signing that recruitment czar Sven Mislintat has been charged with revamping Unai Emery’s first Arsenal squad ready for the new season, with goalkeeper Bernd Leno joining on Tuesday from Bayer Leverkusen. Premier League summer transfer targets Show all 16 1 /16 Premier League summer transfer targets Premier League summer transfer targets Gareth Bale (Real Madrid to Manchester United) AFP/Getty Images Premier League summer transfer targets Jorginho (Napoli to Manchester City) Getty Premier League summer transfer targets Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham to Manchester United) Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images Premier League summer transfer targets Kylian Mbappe (PSG/Monaco to Manchester City) Kylian Mbappé has already hit 19 goals this season Getty Premier League summer transfer targets Alex Sandro (Juventus to Manchester United) AFP/Getty Images Premier League summer transfer targets Leon Bailey (Bayer Leverkusen to Manchester City) Getty Premier League summer transfer targets Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City to Manchester City) Getty Premier League summer transfer targets Nabil Fekir (Lyon to Liverpool) Premier League summer transfer targets Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich to Chelsea) Robert Lewandowski's time at Bayern Munich looks to be coming to a close Getty Premier League summer transfer targets Alisson (Roma to Liverpool/Chelsea/Arsenal) Alisson will be going nowhere this summer Getty Premier League summer transfer targets Steven N’Zonzi (Sevilla to Arsenal) Getty Images Premier League summer transfer targets William Carvalho (Sporting Lisbon to Everton) Carvalho has been linked with a number of Premier League clubs Getty Premier League summer transfer targets Matthijs de Ligt (Ajax to Manchester City) AFP/Getty Images Premier League summer transfer targets Jack Butland (Stoke City to Liverpool) AFP/Getty Images Premier League summer transfer targets Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace to Tottenham) Getty Premier League summer transfer targets Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid to Chelsea) Getty Now a Uruguayan international, Torreira is part of an exciting midfield revolution under Oscar Washington Tabarez as the World Cup dark horses look to squeeze the last out of their prolific generation of strikers in Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani. Speaking on Italian television, Ferrero said: "Torreira left for 30m euro. I bought him from Pescara when no one believed in him. We placed a bet and we won, paying just 3m euro. "La Samp does not sell unless there are excellent offers. We do not look for buyers. We have natural talents whose value increases exponentially." Torreira, originally a striker before moving backwards into midfield, is did not start Uruguay’s opener against Egypt on Friday but made a second-half appearance from the bench.<doc-sep>Arsenal are on the brink of signing Lucas Torreira from Sampdoria, according to the Italian club's president Massimo Ferrero. Sampdoria president Massimo Ferrero has appeared to confirm that a £26m agreement is in place for Arsenal to sign midfielder Lucas Torreira. The Uruguay international, currently away on World Cup duty in Russia, was first tipped to join the Gunners following Unai Emery's arrival last month. Following Jack Wilshere's announcement that he is to depart Arsenal later this month, the North London outfit are now on the brink of bringing in a long-term replacement. Speaking to TMW, Sampdoria chief Ferrero admitted that he is happy to offload the 22-year-old for a huge profit, three years after arriving from Pescara. "Torreira has left for €30m," he said when asked about the recent interest. "I bought him from Pescara when nobody believed in him. We took a gamble on him and we won, paying just £2.75m. The money that comes in will be used to capitalise the company." Arsenal have already recruited Stephan Lichtsteiner and Bernd Leno this summer, while Borussia Dortmund centre-back Sokratis Papastathopoulos is also understood to be on the brink of joining.<doc-sep>
Lucas Torreira is to leave Sampdoria for a fee of around £26million, the Serie A side's president Massimo Ferrero has said, as reports continue to link Arsenal with a move for the 22-year-old Uruguayan midfielder. Torreira joined Sampdoria in 2015 and has made 74 appearances for the Italian club. 'Torreira's gone for €30m (£26m),' Ferrero told Italian television channel Sportitalia. Sampdoria have confirmed Uruguay midfielder Lucas Torreira is set to leave the club 'I bought him from Pescara when nobody believed in him. We gambled on him and we won, paying just €3m. The money we're earning is necessary to increase our club's capital. 'If we get a big offer for somebody, I will accept it, but we don't need to sell our players off at bargain prices.' Unai Emery has been swift to bolster his squad since being confirmed as Arsene Wenger's replacement. Bernd Leno has joined from Bayer Leverkusen, while Stephan Lichtsteiner has moved from Juventus on a free transfer. Torreira, who is currently on international duty at the World Cup with Uruguay, was praised by Cesc Fabregas on BBC ahead of their clash with Saudi Arabia. Torreira is set to become Unai Emery's third signing at Arsenal since taking charge Speaking ahead of the 1-0 win, the Chelsea midfielder, talking initially about Juve midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur, said: 'He's a young boy who signed for Juventus. He hasn't played a lot but you can see that he has a lot of personality, likes to play, he's not scared. 'And for a team like Uruguay that doesn't have a lot of 'ballers' or possession – they need a player like him. 'They also have Torreira on the bench who I really like for Sampdoria and they break lines.'