Joel Campbell Unlikely to Move to AC Milan as Arsenal Tighten Grip on Costa Rican

Joel Campbell will not be heading to AC Milan this summer after Arsenal indicated the Costa Rica striker is not for sale.

Campbell joined the Gunners in 2011 and has spent three seasons on loan at Lorient, Real Betis and Olympiacos.

It was with the Greek champions that the 22-year-old impressed most of all, scoring eight goals in 32 appearances last season, including a sublime finish against Manchester United in the Champions League in February.

His performances, as well as the goal he scored for Costa Rica against Uruguay at the World Cup, alerted some of Europe's heavyweights to his talent, including Italian giants AC Milan.

But the Rossoneri have now seemingly pulled out of a potential bid for the striker after Arsene Wenger backed Campbell to make an impact at the Premier League club.

Campbell scored his first goal in an Arsenal shirt during an emphatic 5-1 victory over Portuguese side Benfica in the Emirates Cup and made a cameo during the 3-0 defeat of Manchester City in the Community Shield on Sunday.

Speaking to the club's website, Wenger said: "Campbell has done very well. I like the way he plays, he's good on the ball, creative and collectively as well he has a good balance between individual skill and collective attitude - that's not easy to find."

AC Milan could instead turn their attention to QPR's Adel Taarabt, who impressed Milan observers under sacked boss Clarence Seedorf, reports La Gazzetta Dello Sport.

Silvio Berlusconi's willingness to splash the cash in the hope of reinstating Milan to the Champions League could also scupper Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur's reported interest in Ezequiel Lavezzi and Douglas Costa respectively.

Paris Saint-Germain do not want to sell any of their star names, but with a renewed effort to take Angel Di Maria to France, Argentine Lavezzi could find himself relegated down the champion's pecking order.

Costa meanwhile has linked up with Shakhtar Donetsk after refusing to do so in the wake of the continued crisis in Ukraine.