Arsenal, Chelsea boost as £80m transfer could be completed ‘very shortly’ with PL rivals ‘open’ to exit | OneFootball

Brentford forward Ivan Toney.

Brentford director Lee Dykes has admitted that they are “open” to selling England international Ivan Toney amid interest from Arsenal and Chelsea.

Toney was one of the best strikers in the Premier League last season as he scored 20 goals in his 33 appearances.

The forward is yet to feature for Brentford this season as he is serving a nine-month ban for his betting offences but will be free to return in January.

The one-time England international may have already played his last game for Brentford as he is being monitored by Arsenal and Chelsea ahead of January as the two London clubs are in the market for a new striker.

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has indicated that Arsenal are ‘aware’ of Toney’s ‘desire to join’ them but Brentford can demand a sizeable fee for their prized asset, who is not out of contract until 2025. A report from 90min claims they are ‘prepared to demand in excess of £80m’.

Brentford chief Dykes thinks the “time that Toney moves on to another club” could “come very shortly”.

“There will be lots of interest in Ivan in January,” Dykes said in an interview with in-house Brentford media. “Naturally, there should be.

“He was the third-highest Premier League goalscorer last season – one of them [Harry Kane] has gone to Germany now, so he’s up there as one of the best strikers in the division. He is in the top five in the world, in my opinion.

“So there should be interest, and maybe the time comes very shortly that Ivan moves on to another club.

“But they will have to pay a decent transfer fee to acquire his services because he is some talent.”

Dykes has also indicated that they would be willing to offload Toney as long as the deal is “right for all parties”.

“We sit in front of every player and say that, if your career goals are above and beyond us, at the right time and if your valuation is met, then we will be open to listening to the numbers. But it’s got to be right for all parties,” Dykes added.

“There’s a lot of thinking and planning that goes into a sale of any potential player at your club. It’s not just a case of, you get a bid and say, ‘Oh, that’s nice, we’ll accept it’.

“We look at how it’s going to affect the club, the team, the morale around the place, new acquisitions, player pathways underneath from the B team and the academy.

“There’s always a willingness from Brentford to do what’s right. So if a deal is there to be done, then we are more than willing to play ball, which the club have proved with Ollie [Watkins], Saïd [Benrahma] and David [Raya].

“But, equally, we will try and hold on to players so that we maximise their potential with Brentford. We will know when that point is.

“Clubs often make an enquiry at the wrong time for us, the wrong time for the player, and we don’t strike deals.”