'Gentlemen agreement' - Arsenal handed huge blow over £56m transfer target

Arsenal have been hotly pursuing several forward transfer targets this summer but they have just been handed a huge blow in the race for RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko.

Tottenham Hotspur had also been keeping tabs on the Slovenian international but it now appears as if the 21-year-old will continue his career with the Bundesliga club with the transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano confirming Sesko will remain at RB Leipzig.

Fabrizio Romano have taken to X (formerly Twitter) to report: “Benjamin Šeško has decided to STAY at RB Leipzig and sign new contract on improved terms! Decision made for talented striker, similar to what Haaland decided back in the days at BVB. Šeško will stay at Leipzig with a new gentlemen agreement for future exit.”

The 21-year-old has scored 18 goals and registered two assists for the Bundesliga club this campaign, scoring a goal in each of RB Leipzig’s last seven matches, making him a key priority for a club in which no player has scored more than 16 goals in a season for the past four campaigns.

The forward’s agents had reportedly met with the Gunners over a potential summer deal. The Slovenian did have a €65 million (£53m) release clause in his contract and any deal that was done depended on Sesko’s decision. That decision appears to have been made with the on-form striker deciding against a transfer next season.

The news will come as a huge blow to the N7 club who had been eyeing up Sesko as a top transfer target, especially following the reports yesterday that AC Milan were closing in on securing a deal for another of Arsenal’s transfer targets: Bologna’s Joshua Zirkzee. The Gunners now remain on the hunt for a new number nine ahead of the 2024/25 campaign with their options appearing to evaporate quickly.

The Emirates had also been eyeing up the possibility of Newcastle’s Alexander Isak and Brentford’s Ivan Toney but the former has an eye-watering £200m price tag on him, according to the Mirror, and has spoken out of his wish to remain with the Magpies once the 2024/25 campaign gets underway.