Brighton & Hove Albion and Crystal Palace are competing for the signature of Eddie Nketiah, who is also attracting interest from Germany.
According to The Sun, Brighton & Hove Albion have entered the race for Eddie Nketiah and will compete with Crystal Palace for the signature of the Arsenal striker.
There could be significant movement at Arsenal in the coming weeks with regard to their strikers. If pieces fall into place, Alexandre Lacazette could be the only recognised frontman left at the club after the conclusion of the January window.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, after his indefinite axing from the squad, does not seem to have a future at the club. Newcastle United are prepared to sign him on an initial loan deal with an option to buy. At the same time, Folarin Balogun is expected to leave the club on loan to further his development, with Middlesbrough being the likely destination.
Then there is the matter of Eddie Nketiah, who is inclined to leave the club despite Arsenal’s numerous attempts to extend his contract. A lack of regular game-time in the Premier League has made the striker seek a move away from the club.
Crystal Palace, who had been interested in Nketiah during the summer window, are expected to make another attempt to sign him. Arsenal could reduce their asking price for the academy graduate, as they might be prepared to accept a knock-down fee for the player who is heading towards free agency.
Now Brighton & Hove Albion have joined the queue for his signature. Graham Potter has lamented the lack of goals from his forwards. Despite the team creating plenty of clear cut chances in games, the Seagulls have lacked a good finisher upfront to put away the chances with Neal Maupay and Leandro Trossard not being consistent enough.
Even though they seem to have found some clinical edge in the final third of late, Brighton are looking at bargain options to bolster their attacking unit. Nketiah fits the profile of players they are looking at, and ideally, they would prefer signing him in the summer on a free transfer.
However, with growing competition, especially from Crystal Palace and also from Bayer Leverkusen in Germany, Brighton might look to sign him early in January.
It does remain to be seen if Arsenal are willing to sanction an exit for Nketiah and leave themselves short on options in the No. 9 role. If the Gunners allow both Aubameyang and Balogun to depart and fail to bring in a new frontman, then there are chances Mikel Arteta will block a move for Nketiah.
