Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah is now expected to stay with the club beyond the transfer deadline after a move to Crystal Palace broke down.
That’s according to The Athletic, who claim that Palace and Arsenal just couldn’t agree on a deal to see Nketiah trade North London for the south of the capital.
Palace were keen to sign Nketiah, and were willing to spend around £10million, viewing him as a player to give Patrick Vieira a boost in attack.
Arsenal wanted £20million though, a price Palace weren’t willing to pay. With the deadline approaching Arsenal made it clear they would actually accept £15million.
That still wasn’t suitable for Palace, and they have now moved on to Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard instead.
Edouard is on the verge of a £15million move to Selhurst Park, and this means that Nketiah is now expected to stay at Arsenal beyond tonight’s deadline.
There aren’t exactly a number of clubs queueing up to sign Nketiah, but this seems like the worst case scenario for Arsenal.
Nketiah’s contract expires at the end of the season, and The Athletic claim that he has rejected a new deal to stay with the Gunners.
That means that the window of opportunity to sell Nketiah – once branded ‘extraordinary’ by Mikel Arteta – for a decent fee is now very, very small. Arsenal have just a matter of hours.
Nketiah can sign a pre-contract agreement with a non-English club in January, or simply run down his contract and move on at the end of the season.
Arsenal would be entitled to compensation, but any incoming cash will now likely be short of the £10million Palace were offering; maybe not Edu’s finest hour, all things considered.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
