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Premier League giants Arsenal are set to make a move for reported Liverpool and Chelsea target Hugo Ekitike. According to BILD, the Gunners are looking to swoop in and make a surprise bid to sign the Eintracht Frankfurt forward.
After spending the second half of the 2023-24 campaign on loan at the Deutsche-Bank Park from PSG, Ekitike joined Eintracht Frankfurt permanently for €16.5 million in July 2024. In his first full season with Frankfurt, he racked up an impressive 22 goals and 12 assists in 48 appearances across all competitions.
Unsurprisingly, a host of elite European clubs are in the race to sign Ekitike in the summer transfer window. While Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United's interest has been well-documented, a new EPL side has recently entered the fray.
According to BILD (via GOAL), Arsenal are exhausted with the difficult negotiations with RB Leipzig about a potential move for Benjamin Sesko. They have chosen to pursue other options, including Ekitike.
For Liverpool, the 23-year-old will be a direct replacement for Darwin Nunez, who has been linked with a move away from Anfield. For Chelsea, he would be an upgrade on current marksman Nicolas Jackson, who has blown hot and cold in his two seasons at the club.
Arsenal have been in the market for a world-class forward for over three transfer windows, but to no avail. Besides Ekitike and Sesko, they have also been linked with Sporting CP's Viktor Gyokeres, but the Swede is likely to prefer a move to Manchester United instead.
With the transfer window officially set to open on July 1, the race for Ekitike's services between the EPL sides is likely to intensify.
Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea still in race to sign young star from relegation-threatened Ligue 1 giants - Reports
According to reports from Caught Offside, multiple top Premier League sides are interested in signing Malick Fofana from Ligue 1 side Olympique Lyon.
Fofana joined Lyon from Belgian side Gent for a reported €19.5 million fee at the start of the 2024-25 campaign. He impressed with his blistering pace and silky dribbling in his debut campaign in France, racking up 11 goals and six assists in 41 games for OL.
Lyon face the threat of being relegated to Ligue 2 due to their financial troubles, with the only way out being the sale of their prized assets. The club is expected to part ways with its best talents, with Fofana set to be among the first batch of players to depart.
Sides like Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal, who have expressed an interest in signing the young Belgian star, will have to pay a pretty penny for his services. Despite their potential relegation to the second division, the French side are looking for a fee in the range of €45-50 million for Fofana.
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Aaryan Nagraj
Aaryan has been covering European football at Sportskeeda since the start of 2024. He is pursuing an integrated M.Sc. degree in Chemistry at NIT Rourkela, and tends to rely on his proclivity for numbers and statistics for his content, making the most of websites like Transfermarkt and FotMob. He is also a district level basketball and table tennis player.
A Borussia Dortmund fan, Aaryan had his first tryst with football during the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Despite his young mind being influenced by Lionel Messi's exploits, his favorite World Cup moment is Cristiano Ronaldo's stunning free-kick against Spain from the 2018 version. He strongly believes that Jude Bellingham and Florian Wirtz can replicate the Messi-Ronaldo rivalry due to their respective potentials.
Aaryan, who has been on commentary panels for football and cricket tournaments at his university, is a huge admirer of Achraf Hakimi for the Moroccan's loan stint in Dortmund between 2018 and 2020. His favorite manager is Jurgen Klopp, who impressed him with his excellent tactical nous and benignant man-management skills.
When he is not scouring the internet for unique statistics, Aaryan follows the Indian Super League, the A-League, and the Saudi Pro League among others. He is an avid quizzer and debater, and a trained classical and western musician who likes to rock out for his college band, Euphony, as lead vocalist and guitarist.
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Edited by Arshit Garg