Arsenal and Japan World Cup hero Junichi Inamoto will be allowed to leave Arsenal this summer.

A Premier League spokesman confirms to Reuters that Inamoto has been released on a free transfer and is available.

Arsenal declined to confirm the news, but reports suggested the player was released before the World Cup began.

However, the league have denied making the comment.

"We don't know where the quote has come from, and we're trying to investigate where it came from. We wouldn't release that kind of information normally," another(!) spokesman told the AFP agency.

Tribal Football suggest that Inamoto may be used as a makeweight in the deal bringing Mark van Bommel from PSV Eindhoven to Arsenal.