Arsenal are now pushing hard to sign a « very talented » British striker, who recently scored a hat-trick, but they may have to fend off interest from their Premier League rivals.
Gunners set sights on new striker
Although the Gunners have plenty of options at striker, with Kai Havertz giving Mikel Arteta a selection dilemma by scoring the winner against Chelsea on Tuesday night, another centre-forward was of interest during the January transfer window.
Indeed, the north Londoners entered talks over a deal for James Wilson near the end of the window, but the young Scottish striker ultimately ended up signing for Tottenham Hotspur, on what was a quiet deadline day at the Emirates Stadium.
Arteta did manage to get one new forward through the door, with Evan Mooney, who is capable of playing at centre-forward, right-wing and in attacking midfield, joining from St. Mirren in a late deal.
However, despite securing Mooney’s signature, Andrea Berta & co remain keen on signing another young forward, and they are now pushing hard to bring in Middlesbrough striker Cruz Ibeh, who has started to attract serious interest.
Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool are also named as potential suitors for the 17-year-old, who has already been handed his debut for Boro, although he still features for the U21 side, recently bagging a hat-trick in a 3-1 victory against Ipswich Town U21s.
The teenager is said to be a natural finisher, who also possesses pace and power, which means Middlesbrough are eager to keep hold of him, and the Championship side are confident they will be able to secure his long-term future.
« Very talented » Ibeh is one for the future
There is no pressing need for Arsenal to bring in another striker, with Havertz bagging the winning goal against Chelsea, on a night where Gabriel Jesus also put in an impressive performance.
However, the Boro starlet could be one for the future, having received plaudits from manager Kim Hellberg, who said after handing him his debut at Craven Cottage in the FA Cup: « He’s a very talented boy. He has been training with us. He has a lot of quality. »
« He’s young so we wanted to get him this taste, playing against Premier League centre-backs and to learn from it. He must grow from it. Go back and use it as energy to train even harder, train even better. »
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Given his age, the Englishman is still inexperienced at first-team level, but he has impressed for Middlesbrough U18s, chipping in with five goal contributions in ten U18 Premier League outings this season.
Ibeh is evidently an exciting future prospect, and it would be brilliant if Arsenal were able to win the race for his signature, after missing out on Wilson.
Source:
www.footballfancast.com