Napoli bid for Marseille star Nicolas Nkoulou rejected

Marseille are believed to have turned down an offer from Serie A giants Napoli for Nicolas Nkoulou.

The 23-year-old defender, who has been named in Ligue 1's Team of the Season for the past two years, has been linked with a January move to Arsenal in recent weeks, but the Italian club are thought to have seen a bid in excess of £10m rejected.

"We had an offer from Napoli in mid-December which was for more than €12m (£10m) and was not acted upon," Marseille president Vincent Labrune told RMC. "There is little chance of him going."

Nkoulou joined Marseille from Monaco in 2011.