Arsenal chief Edu may be forced to reassess his summer transfer plans ahead of the new Premier League season as Marseille have reportedly pulled out of a deal to sign Gunners striker Eddie Nketiah.
Nketiah appears to be surplus to requirements at the Emirates Stadium, with the likes of Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus ahead of him in the pecking order.
And the north London giants were believed to be ready to sanction the player’s loan move to Marseille, with the deal said to include an obligation for the French club to buy Nketiah permanently.
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According to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, Nketiah had green lighted a deal to join Marseille.
But the Ligue 1 outfit didn’t want to accept the £25.5million package Arsenal had demanded after having other bids rejected. And they have told the Premier League giants that the transfer has now collapsed.
Edu will therefore be forced to go back to the drawing board as he attempts to fine-tune the Arsenal squad ahead of their Premier League opener against Wolves on Saturday.
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Nketiah joined Arsenal from the Chelsea academy as a teenager in 2015 and has bagged 38 goals in 168 appearances for the Gunners.
Last season, he played 27 Premier League matches and six games in the Champions League but saw his opportunities limited as the campaign progressed as attacking rival Havertz enjoyed a purple patch of form in front of goal.
Nketiah, 25, was named in the Arsenal squad on Sunday as they defeated Lyon 2-0 in the Emirates Cup. But he failed to play a single minute as he was kept on the bench by manager Mikel Arteta.
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And after the clash, Arteta suggested Nketiah wouldn’t be going anywhere this summer as he explained: “All the players that are here, that’s the biggest chance that they’ll stay with us. That’s why they're here.”
According to football.london, an opening bid from Marseille was immediately rebuffed by the Gunners, with a second offer falling below the asking price despite the proposal being structured appealingly. And the deal is now reportedly off after the two clubs were unable to finalise the terms of a third bid.
Edu may now attempt to resurrect a deal or try to move Nketiah on elsewhere. But the former midfielder will be pushed for time, with the new Premier League campaign beginning later this week and the summer transfer window slamming shut at the end of the month.
