But the 24-year-old ended up joining Italian giants Juventus on transfer deadline day.
He told www.onsoranje.nl: “My agent did have contact with Arsenal, but it took too long. I had no contact with Arsene Wenger.
“Wigan, Everton, Fulham and Newcastle had fairly concrete interest.”
Elia also rejected a move to Turkish giants Galatasaray.
He said: “Financially, it was a good option. I asked the coach what he thought of the idea of me playing in Turkey. He said I would be out of the view of the scouts.
“I value his opinion. The Dutch team is very important to me.
“That’s partly why I chose Juventus, to get high-level play. He told me to go to England, but Italy was good too.
“I used to have a Del Peiro shirt; I was also a big fan of Fabrizio Ravanelli. It’s great to play with a legend like Del Peiro.”
