Juventus midfielder admits he turned down Arsenal, Tottenham

Juventus midfielder Miralem Pjanic has admitted that he turned down advances from north London duo Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur earlier in his career.

The 27-year-old had been the subject of interest from the Premier League giants during his time at AS Roma, and he instead opted for a switch to Turin with the Old Lady.

Prior to Juventus' Champions League round of 16 tie versus Tottenham, the Bosnia & Herzegovina international revealed that his career could have taken a different path, had he decided to do so.

"You want to know the names? They were Arsenal and Tottenham," he is quoted as saying by The Telegraph. When asked on Spurs, he added: "There was the opportunity but at that moment I told them I was happy where I was."

"And that's why we didn't sign the deal. But I made my choice using my head and if I made that choice not to go to an English team it was for good reasons."

Juventus have reached the finals of the Champions League in two of their previous three seasons, and they will be aiming to make further progress when they host Spurs in the round of 16 first-leg on Tuesday night.

Spurs come off impressive results versus the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal, but they still have a tough task of overcoming a Juventus side, who have kept seven shutouts on the trot.