Arsenal transfer news: Paulo Dybala will cost Gunners £31m or more, insist Palermo

The striker has been linked with a move to the Emirates

Paulo Dybala (GETTY IMAGES)

Arsenal will have to pay upwards of £31m for Palermo striker Paulo Dybala.

The Serie A side have slapped a whopping price-tag on the youngster after his fine season in Italy led to speculation he could depart, with the Gunners among those keen to lure him away.

The Evening Standard report that earlier in the season Arsenal sent scouts to watch the 21-year-old, whose stock has risen as the campaign has gone on. A run of a goals in five consecutive Serie A matches has helped him to nine goals in 17 league appearances this term.

Yet the Argentinian will not be allowed to leave Palermo on the cheap, with the club's president Maurizio Zamparini using the example of Javier Pastore, who left Palermo to join Paris St Germain in 2011, for the fee being demanded for Dybala.

“He is a world-class player who is being compared with Javier Pastore, so his price tag matches the skill,” said Zamparini. “We’re talking £31m and upwards."

He continued: “So far offers for Dybala have come in only indirectly, because people know how tough Zamparini can be.”