ARSENAL TRANSFER NEWS LIVE UPDATES: Follow below for the latest from the Emirates...

Monday August 21

Gerrard praise

07.40: Steven Gerrard has heaped praise on Alexandre Lacazette.

Arsenal broke their transfer record to add the striker to the squad this summer.

And Gerrard likes the look of the former Lyon man.

“They’ve added Lacazette and he looks a real buy,” Gerrard said.

“They’ve spent a lot of money on him but I’ve watched him a bit this season and he started with a bang.

“His movement in the box is excellent and he only needs one chance to score a goal.”

Ozil wants to leave

04:00: Martin Keown finds Mesut Ozil utterly frustrating to watch in an Arsenal kit.

Ozil came under fire from Liverpool U18 boss Steven Gerrard after Arsenal lost 1-0 to Stoke on Saturday and now Arsenal legend Keown has criticised the Germany international.

"Mesut Ozil is the most frustrating player I've seen wear an Arsenal shirt," Keown told the Daily Mail.

"He is an icing-on-the-cake player — someone who is happy to create the chances to win matches but will not scrap and fight for the team.

"Ozil is an expensive luxury — but if he is not going to work hard out of possession then he must do so when he has the ball."

Sunday 20 August

Oxlade-Chamberlain new deal

23:55: Arsenal have offered Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain a new four-year contract to fend off interest from Chelsea.

That's according to the Daily Star who claim the deal would almost double his wages to £125,000-a-week.

Chelsea have bid £40m to sign the 24-year-old, whose current contract runs out next June.

But it is reported Arsenal are confident of tying Oxlade-Chamberlain up to a new deal at the Emirates.

Wilshere to AC Milan

16:13: AC Milan want to sign Jack Wilshere, according to Corriere dello Sport.

Wilshere is free to find a new club and Arsenal are said to have offered him to Newcastle.

But the club could accept a bid from Serie A giants Milan, who are keen to continue their summer recruitment drive.

Talks between the two clubs have begun.

Venlo agreement

14:33: Arsenal will send Nigerian youngster Kelechi Nwakali to Dutch side VVV Venlo once his paperwork has been sorted out.

“We will have a young player from Borussia Dortmund, a talent from Real Madrid (Mink Peeters) and one from Arsenal (Nwakali), which gives us more opportunities,” said VVV manager Maurice Steijn.

Nwakali, 19, spent last season on loan at MVV Maastricht.

Benzema offered Real Madrid contract extension

12:54: Karim Benzema will sign a new Real Madrid contract before the end of the month to kill any chance of Arsenal signing the striker.

Arsenal have been linked to Benzema in recent days as they seek another new goalscorer before the end of the transfer window.

Spanish outlet Don Balon claimed he may move to the Emirates, with Alexis Sanchez going the other way.

But Real are determined to keep their man.

Le Journal du Dimanche claim the France international will pen a new deal which will run until 2021.

Benzema’s current contract expires in the summer of 2019.

Wenger on transfers

11:51: Arsene Wenger admits he must cut his Arsenal squad down before he makes anymore signings this summer.

Following their 1-0 defeat at Stoke, Wenger said: “I expect to sell players first [before we buy]. We have too many and it is not manageable.

“We have 31, that's too many. But I am not after a game like that in transfer mode."

Draxler battle

10:40: Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool are all reportedly interested in signing Paris Saint-Germain star Julian Draxler.

The PSG attacking midfielder, 23, has been put up for sale and the Mirror say the Prem trio are all ready to buy him.

PSG are preparing a second blockbuster move of the summer to sign Monaco hitman Kylian Mbappe.

The deal is likely to hit £160million and it would follow the £200m world-record deal for Neymar.

Draxler joined PSG in January from Wolfsburg for £40m and the Mirror say he is now available for just £32m, with the club willing to accept a small loss on the player.

Sanchez to City?

10:00: Manchester City are reportedly plotting a £70million bid to pluck Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal.

Sanchez missed Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat to Stoke earlier today with a muscular injury.

The Chilean, who is into the final year of his current deal, is demanding a new contract worth in excess of £300,000 a week.

City have been keeping tabs on Sanchez, with Pep Guardiola keen to reunite with the player who he previously worked with at Barcelona.

And now, according to the Sunday Mirror, Guardiola is planning a £70m raid to get the 28-year-old.

The Mirror say the Etihad boss will work right until the 11pm deadline of the window on August 31 to secure a deal.