Exclusive: Arsenal to reject teasing opening offer for outcast Arteta wants gone as Edu names his price

Arsenal are set to reject Marseille’s impending £20m offer for Eddie Nketiah – but Roberto De Zerbi’s side have been given some encouragement a deal is there to be done, TEAMtalk can reveal.

Nketiah has been the ‘nearly man’ at Arsenal for many years now. After being prolific in the club’s academy, he made his first-team debut, aged 18, in September 2017 – coming off the bench in a Europa League clash with BATE Borisov.

The striker chipped in with seven goals in his first three seasons with the Gunners before becoming more of a regular under manager Mikel Arteta from 2020 onwards.

To date, he has scored 38 goals and bagged seven assists in 168 appearances in all competitions, but just 70 of those have been in the starting XI.

The one-time England international put pen to paper on a five-year deal in June 2022 following a strong end to the campaign, with the forward hopeful of tying down a regular starting spot.

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That has not come to pass and his lack of game time has led to reports of an Arsenal exit, with Premier League sides such as Fulham, Ipswich Town and Crystal Palace among his potential suitors.

The 25-year-old is likely to struggle for minutes next term as Arteta’s men search for a new number nine; with Ajax’s Brian Brobbey and Napoli’s Victor Osimhen and Sporting Lisbon’s Viktor Gyokeres on their radar.

Arsenal consider Nketiah move

As Arsenal prepare for the new season, where they will try and topple defending champions Manchester City after finishing in second for the last two campaigns, their focus is very much on improving the squad and getting rid of fringe players.

Nketiah is seen as a sellable asset and could leave this summer, particularly as he is a homegrown player and would go down as ‘pure profit’ on the balance sheet.

While there is a great deal of Premier League interest in the former Leeds United loanee’s services, a French giant appears to be showing the strongest interest in recruiting him.

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Marseille are big admirers of Nketiah and new head coach Roberto De Zerbi is understood to be using his Premier League connections to try and fire them up the Ligue 1 table, back into the Champions League, and ending Paris Saint-Germain’s dominance of French football.

The former Brighton boss has already targeted Manchester United outcast Mason Greenwood and talks are ongoing over a deal worth around £30m. De Zerbi now wants Nketiah but Marseille face an uphill battle in securing his signature.

Arsenal set to reject Marseille bid

TEAMtalk understands Arsenal have slapped a £40m price tag on the striker’s head, with sporting director Edu unlikely to relent on that figure – particularly due to Nketiah’s age and the fact he still has three years left on his contract.

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The Gunners are in a strong position and the attacker is not itching from an Emirates departure; far from it. He and Arteta have a strong bond and the Spaniard would happily have him around as he seeks to improve his squad’s strength in depth.

Arteta believes Nketiah is a top striker, has been very apologetic about his lack of game time and that is why Marseille – the only French team to win the Champions League – are preparing a £20m bid for the front man.

However, TEAMtalk sources reveal that is set to be rejected. But, as there is plenty of time left in the summer transfer window, and with Arsenal looking to strengthen their attack, a deal could yet be struck for Nketiah.