Olympic Football – Argentina and Brazil head the betting to land the Olympic gold medal at Beijing this summer. Click here for all the latest odds!

Xabi Alonso’s agent claims that Arsenal have expressed an interest in signing the Spanish international.

The Spaniard has seen a possible move to Juventus fall through after the Italian club opted to sign Christian Poulsen from Sevilla.

However, reports continue to suggest that Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez is prepared to sell Alonso to fund his own spending plans.

Gunners manager Arsene Wenger is in the market for a midfielder after losing Mathieu Flamini and Alexander Hleb to Barcelona, while Gilberto Silva is set to join Panathinaikos.

“The player knows about this subject and now the decision lies with Liverpool,” his agent, Inaki Ibanez, told Publico.

Alonso’s sale would provide Benitez with the funds to sign Aston Villa captain Gareth Barry, who, coincidentally, has also been linked with a move to Arsenal.

Olympic Football – Argentina and Brazil head the betting to land the Olympic gold medal at Beijing this summer. Click here for all the latest odds!