Chelsea and Arsenal rejected chance to sign Villarreal star

Chelsea and Arsenal rejected the opportunity to land Villarreal defender Pau Torres during the summer transfer window.

The Spaniard has been touted to leave the Yellow Submarines for the last two seasons, but there have been no concrete offers yet.

Fabrizio Romano has now revealed that the Blues and Gunners explored a summer move for the centre-back, but the price was steep.

Villarreal wanted around €45 million for the ball-playing defender, but neither Chelsea nor Arsenal were willing to pay the transfer fee.

Tottenham Hotspur were also in the running to land the Spain international this summer, but they shared a similar stance to their rivals.

Torres has been fancied to pursue a big-money move away from Villarreal. It could happen in January if he shines at the World Cup in Qatar.

The 25-year-old is said to be interested in joining Real Madrid or Barcelona, but neither of those clubs have made an approach for him thus far.