Borussia Dortmund have turned down a €3 million (£2 million) offer from Arsenal for midfield sensation Nuri Sahin.
The young Turk, aged just 16, recently helped his country to win the Under-17 European championships and is widely regarded as the most talented Bundesliga player of his generation.
He only joined Bert Van Marwijk’s professional squad this summer and became the Bundesliga’s youngest-ever player to star in Europe when he was used in Dortmund’s goalless InterToto Cup draw against Sigma Olomouc.
Sahin is expected to make his Bundesliga debut on Saturday when Dortmund kick off their season with a visit to Wolfsburg’s Volkswagen-Arena.
Van Marwijk has reportedly urged the financially struggling club to keep hold of the youngster, who has also been scouted by Chelsea and Manchester United.
"If we keep him, Nuri will give us plenty of joy in the future," stressed the Dutch coach.
Managing director Hans-Joachim Watzke confirmed that Arsenal have made a firm bid for the youngster, but were told that Sahin is not for sale at the moment.
"We could have cashed in €3 million from Arsenal for him, but Sahin is tied to us until 2009 and in a couple of years he is sure to be worth a lot more," Watzke told Sportbild.
Arsenal's scouting network is vast and they have had huge success in recent years snapping up youngsters such as Cesc Fabregas, Philippe Senderos, Gael Clichy and Arturo Lupoli, but this time they look to have failed in their bid to snatch Sahin.