Juventus sporting director Giuseppe Marotta has admitted that Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner was not the club's first-choice transfer.

Juventus have chased a number of forwards in the transfer window, including Napoli's Edinson Cavani and more recently Dimitar Berbatov, but now look close to wrapping up a deal for Bendtner.

However, Marotta said that the nature of the transfer market meant that Juventus were forced to look elsewhere.

"Bendtner is not the high-profile striker we were hoping to sign, but it's a chance we had to take in a difficult market like this," Marotta told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

Bendtner is likely to be unveiled as a Juve player later today.