Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has sent Arsenal and Chelsea back to the drawing board by revealing that the Premier League duo’s top striker target, Victor Osimhen, is on the verge of signing a new contract. With that in mind, Express Sport takes you through four other attacking options the Blues and the Gunners should consider…
Ivan Toney
Widely considered to be next in the queue for both Arsenal and their cross-city rivals, Toney’s 20-goal Premier League haul last season left him behind only Manchester City extraordinaire Erling Haaland and England captain Harry Kane.
Toney, 27, has made no secret of the notion that he wants to test his talents at a higher level than Brentford, who are expected to demand £80million if big teams come knocking in the January transfer window.
Moving for the former Newcastle United star wouldn’t be without risk, however, as he has been suspended from football this season for breaching betting regulations and will not return to the pitch until after the New Year.
Dusan Vlahovic
The Serb had been linked with a move to the Premier League even before completing his big-money move to Juventus almost two years ago. Chelsea and Arsenal both hold an interest in Vlahovic, who has scored five Serie A goals so far this season.
His services wouldn’t come cheap though. Given the mammoth fee Juve forked out to lure him away from Fiorentina, the Turin giants will only accept a premium offer, with reports placing the 23-year-old’s asking price at a hefty £86m.
Evan Ferguson
Although the 19-year-old is widely expected to see out the season with Brighton; Arsenal and Chelsea could do a lot worse than to test the waters next summer. Ferguson, who hails from Bettystown in Ireland, is one of the most exciting young talents in the Premier League.
Thriving under Seagulls boss Roberto De Zerbi, the youngster has bagged six goals in just over 650 minutes of league action this campaign. Already performing to an extremely high level and with his best years ahead of him, Ferguson’s signature will be coveted when he deems it time to move on from the Amex Stadium.
Serhou Guirassy
It is no surprise that top clubs around Europe are keeping a close eye on the Stuttgart man, given that he is scoring at a staggering rate of one goal every 46 minutes in the Bundesliga this season.
Couple that with his astonishingly low £15.1m release clause and it seems certain that Guirassy will soon get the biggest move of his career so far. Whether it’s to either the Emirates Stadium or Stamford Bridge remains to be seen.