Premier League club fail to agree transfer of £15m-rated attacker with Arsenal and turn to another target
Unless there is an unexpected late turnaround, Eddie Nketiah will not be sold by Arsenal to Crystal Palace this summer as the two club have failed to agree a transfer deal, according to the Athletic.
The Athletic report that Palace were angling for a £10m deal for the 22-year-old, but Arsenal sought £20m for Nketiah’s services, though they were even willing to reduce their price tag to £15m.
Nketiah will not be linking up with Gunners legend Patrick Vieira at Selhurst Park, barring a late turnaround, as the Eagles have instead turned their attentions to Odsonne Edouard.
The Athletic add that the Celtic talisman is expected to cost Palace around £12m, so he’s a slightly cheaper option than Nketiah, though he has plenty more experience at senior level.
Whilst Arsenal fans may be pleased to see that an academy graduate is not being sold after all, the club could find it difficult to preserve Nketiah’s value due to his dwindling role with the team.
Nketiah will find action hard to come by at Arsenal due to competition for places.
Nketiah is currently sidelined with an injury that he suffered in the pre-season defeat to Chelsea but will find minutes hard to come by when he returns due to Mikel Arteta’s other striker options.
Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are the main options for the Gunners up top, but Nketiah will also have to battle fellow academy graduate Folarin Balogun and Gabriel Martinelli for an opportunity to lead the line.
The Gunners ace, who debuted at the start of the 2017/18 season and fully broke into the first-team in the second-half of 19/20, started 14 of his 29 appearances last season.
Edouard is still a solid option for Vieira to call on to battle Christian Benteke, Jordan Ayew and Jean-Philippe Mateta for the starting striker spot at Palace.
The 23-year-old has been sensational for Celtic since joining on an initial loan in the summer of 2017, the Frenchman has provided a remarkable return of 86 goals and 39 assists in 179 appearances.
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