Arsenal 'preparing' swap deal to land £100m Serie A ace as Fulham face bizarre transfer battle

This summer, Arsenal will be signing an out-and-out striker. Which striker that is, however, continues to remain a mystery as the club has been heavily linked with moves for RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko, Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres, Newcastle Alexander Isak, Bologna’s Joshua Zirkzee and Brentford’s Ivan Toney.

However, another name has re-emerged in the past few days with the Gunners now believed to be ready to part with two of their stars in a bid to secure the goal-scoring star.

Napoli’s Victor Osimhen has once again been touted with the move to north London. A report in Italy on Monday suggested that the Nigerian 25-year-old is ‘young and ambitious and dreams of the Premier League’ and it will be be ‘very difficult’ for the striker to remain at the Serie A club next season.

Osimhen, who has 17 goals in 32 appearances this campaign, had been heavily linked with a move to Arsenal’s London rivals Chelsea in the past few months. Recent reports also suggested that while Napoli’s asking price of £113m is inconceivable for the Stamford Bridge club - especially when considering their need to balance the books ahead of June’s Financial Fair Play deadline - Chelsea will happily part with Trevor Chalobah and Conor Gallagher in order to free up funds whilst also making a player-swap deal with Romelu Lukaku.

However, the most recent news indicates that Arsenal have ‘recently resurfaced’ as an option with ‘London calling’ for Osimhen and, with a potential player-swap deal also on the cards for the N7 side, the Gunners are said to ‘have a few men who don’t displease’ the Serie A side. These men are reportedly left-back Takehiro Tomiyasu and Emile Smith Rowe with the Emirates club prepared to offer the duo in a bid to bring down the cost of a proposed deal for Osimhen.

This latest news will come as huge disappointment for Fulham who have identified Smith Rowe, 23, as their primary target for the upcoming transfer season. The Hale End graduate has struggled in the Arsenal pecking order of late, making just three starts for the Gunners this campaign.

He has failed to score a goal in two years, but did pick up a Player of the Match award for a fabulous display against Luton in April. Marco Silva had high hopes of bringing the £60m-rated star to Craven Cottage but with a move to Serie A’s Napoli on the cards, the Portuguese manager is now likely to find acquiring the England international’s signature much harder.

Tomiyasu, on the other hand, recently signed a contract extension that should see him remain at the Emirates until 2026.