Christian Norgaard may have already given Arsenal transfer green light amid £9.3m bid

Christian Norgaard has previously insisted that his family "loves" living in London, with the Brentford captain linked with a sensational summer move to Arsenal.

The Gunners are interested in signing the 31-year-old midfielder, football.london understands, and have scouted the Dane for at least two years. Earning himself the reputation of a decent Premier League footballer under Thomas Frank, Mikel Arteta sees Norgaard as a potential replacement for Thomas Partey, who looks set to leave when his deal expires on June 30.

According to The Athletic, Arsenal have made a bid worth €11million (£9.3million) for Norgaard and while an agreement has not yet been reached there is confidence it will be struck. Norgaard has two years remaining on his current deal and only signed a contract extension with the Bees in March. After the extension was announced, the Denmark international spoke to Brentford's club media and explained why he had signed on the dotted line.

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"There are a lot of factors that played their part in me signing a new deal," the midfielder said. "Most importantly, it’s a place I feel very safe in. It’s an environment I enjoy being in and my family loves living in west London. If they are not happy then I will not be able to perform.

“My wife is very supportive. She’s fantastic with our children as well but she also made it pretty clear that her first priority is that she’d be very happy if we stayed. I’m sure that also played a part in my way of thinking."

With Norgaard admitting his family love living in west London, it would be possible for the Bees captain to remain living in the capital if he did indeed make the move to Emirates Stadium. "I enjoy the responsibility and the role I have at the club," Norgaard added.

“I’ve been at other clubs where I haven’t played as much so just playing football is something you should always appreciate. Our whole coaching staff is incredible to work with and again, is something that played its part in me extending. It’s special to keep being a part of something that you’ve been a part of for a long time."

Norgaard was also asked about his dream and what the future holds for Brentford. He said: “The biggest dream would be to win something or to clinch a European spot. They're dreams of course and something we should aspire to do. In general, I want us to maintain being humble, maintain working hard and maintain the culture we have because you cannot take staying in the Premier League for granted, which is something we have done now for five seasons.

“I think the future looks really bright. We have players on long contracts, young players and players willing to learn. I’m really proud of how I have performed and how I have stayed fit. We’re not done yet but if it continues, I will probably look back at this season as being the best one for me personally in a Brentford shirt."

It remains to be seen if Norgaard will leave Brentford this summer. With Arsenal and fellow north London rivals Tottenham interested, though, he certainly has a tough decision to make.