90min

West Brom's Jonny Evans Set to Snub Summer Switch to Arsenal in Favour of Man City Move

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​​West Brom captain Jonny Evans is set to snub a summer move to long term suitors Arsenal and hold out for a move to Premier League Champions elect ​Manchester City, according to ​The Mirror.

The 30-year-old will be available for a ​bargain £3m in the summer due to a relegation clause in his contract.

The club currently sit 10 points adrift of safety and relegations now seems like a case of when not if. The Baggies considered selling Evans in January - when they might've taken upwards of £20m for his services - but ultimately made the decision to keep one of their most experienced heads at the club to aid their relegation fight.

Both ​Arsenal and City saw January bids for the Northern Ireland international rejected. The club may now be ruing the decision not to sell in the winter, with relegation now all but confirmed.

While Arsenal are likely to rekindle their interest this summer due to Evans' bargain fee, the former ​Manchester United player is thought to prefer a move to City.

According to the report, Evans is still based in the north west and does not fancy making the move to London. Further to this, City's prospects of playing Champions League football next season is a significant pull for Evans.

However, Arsenal may be more willing to offer game time to Evans, as competition at centre back at the Etihad Stadium is fierce. After signing Aymeric Laporte in January after missing out on Evans, Pep Guardiola also has Vincent Kompany, Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones at his disposal in Evans' preferred position.

While Arsenal's ​Premier League campaign has been underwhelming this season, they could yet gain qualification for next season's Champions League through their Europa League exploits. A 2-2 draw in their Europa League quarter final second leg against CSKA Moscow saw the Gunners qualify for the semi-finals of the competition, ​where they will now face Atletico Madrid.