Arsenal boosted as Victor Osimhen 'wants Premier League move' | OneFootball

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Arsenal have been boosted in their pursuit of Victor Osimhen as the Napoli star 'wants to move to the Premier League', but journalist Ben Jacobs has told GIVEMESPORT why Paris Saint-Germain could still attempt to beat the Emirates Stadium outfit to a summer deal.

Although the Gunners showed that they have plenty of firepower when they recorded their biggest away win in the Premier League era by thrashing West Ham United 6-0 last weekend, boss Mikel Arteta will have the opportunity to draft in reinforcements when the transfer window reopens ahead of the 2024/25 campaign getting underway.

Having spent in the region of £200million on fresh faces last summer and enjoyed an impressive run of form, Arsenal are firmly in the title race alongside Liverpool and Manchester City, but there could be another spending spree in the coming months as they look to go to the next level.

Arsenal will consider battling it out with Chelsea to land Osimhen when the transfer window reopens in the summer, according to the Mirror, as Arteta is desperate to improve his attacking options after fears of breaching spending rules resulted in him being unable to enter the market for a marquee signing ahead of the winter's February 1 deadline.

The report suggests that the Gunners have already held discussions with the representatives of the Nigeria international - who only found the back of the net once at the Africa Cup of Nations as his country were beaten to continental glory by hosts Ivory Coast in last weekend's final - as he has been on their radar for at least two years, but Chelsea are the favourites to pounce.

Although talkSPORT reporter Alex Crook recently told GIVEMESPORT that Osimhen has been identified as the west Londoners' top summer target after head coach Mauricio Pochettino missed out on welcoming an acquisition to Stamford Bridge during the early stages of 2024, Arsenal remain in the hunt for his signature and statistics highlight that he is more clinical than Gabriel Jesus.

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has confirmed that the striker will walk away from the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium at the end of the season, handing Arteta a significant boost, but it is understood that the reigning Serie A champions could hold out for his £112million release clause to be activated.

Meeting that lucrative figure would result in Osimhen becoming the most expensive signing in Arsenal's entire history, beating the £105million fee which was forked out to lure Declan Rice away from London rivals West Ham less than 12 months ago.

It has emerged that the 25-year-old is on Paris Saint-Germain's radar as they prepare for Kylian Mbappe's potential exit from the Parc des Princes, while with offering the Gunners further competition for his services.

Jacobs understands that Ligue 1 table-toppers PSG would have no issues when it comes to meeting Napoli's demands for Osimhen if Mbappe embarks on a fresh challenge at the end of the season, but the French heavyweights are not optimistic of winning the race for his signature due to there being suspicions that he is eager to test himself in the Premier League.

Although the respected journalist feels that Arteta and sporting director Edu could profit from the former Lille marksman's stance, his eagerness to compete in the English top flight may also play into Chelsea's hands ahead of a potential transfer saga coming to fruition in the summer.

Arteta to continue keeping tabs on Neto

Arsenal are long-term admirers of Pedro Neto and will be monitoring his progress closely ahead of potentially attempting to lure him to north London in the summer, according to Football Insider, but they are facing competition from Liverpool and further suitors across Europe.

The report suggests that the Wolverhampton Wanderers winger, who has racked up 13 goal contributions this season, is expected to be the subject of bids when the transfer window reopens for business and his current employers could look to cash in as they attempt to alleviate fears of breaching the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules.

It is understood that Arsenal sent scouts to watch Neto during Wolves' defeat to Brentford last weekend as they looked to up the ante in their pursuit and made further checks over his suitability for Arteta's style of play ahead of a possible swoop in the coming months.

Sunday People chief sports writer Neil Moxley previously told GIVEMESPORT that the Portugal international's potent form in the final third of the pitch will result in Wanderers being unwilling to cash in unless a bid worth more than £70million is put on the table.

Wolves are in a strong negotiating position ahead of Arsenal and other interested parties potentially entering discussions as Neto still has close to three-and-a-half years remaining on his £50,000-per-week contract at Molineux, but Arsenal have already shown that they are open to splashing the cash for key targets.