Gunners hint at Barry bid

Manager O'Neill reveals conversation with Arsenal No.2

By James Dall   Last updated: 15th July 2008   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Gunners hint at Barry bid

Barry: May have Arsenal offer to consider

He (Pat Rice) phoned Steve Walford to ask how the Liverpool thing had gone and said that they might show an interest.

Martin O'Neill
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Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill has confirmed that Arsenal have hinted they may enter the race to sign midfielder Gareth Barry.

Premier League side Liverpool have made no secret of their desire to land Barry, and have been locked in negotiations with Villa over the player's sale for several weeks.

O'Neill said on Saturday that a deal still had not been struck between the two clubs, although he was hopeful of a resolution soon.

Over the weekend, The Gunners were linked with making an offer for England international Barry, with right-back Justin Hoyte potentially involved in the deal as part-exchange.

And O'Neill has revealed that Arsene Wenger's assistant manager Pat Rice spoke with the club, intimating that Arsenal could be set to step up their interest in Barry as they look for a replacement for Mathieu Flamini.

"Myself and Steve Walford both know Arsene Wenger's assistant Pat Rice," O'Neill told The Sun.

"He phoned Steve to ask how the Liverpool thing had gone and said that they might show an interest.

"At the end of the conversation Arsenal said 'that's fine' and that they'll let us know. That is exactly what happened."

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