Arsenal in battle to sign £125k-a-week star as Arteta looks to secure 4th signing

Arsenal face a battle with Roma and Atalanta to sign Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham as Mikel Arteta looks to strengthen his attack ahead of the new season, according to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio.

Arteta has already spent over £70m this summer after signing centre-back Ben White, left-back Nuno Tavares and central midfielder Albert Lokonga but the Gunners boss is now focussed on bringing in attacking reinforcements during the closing weeks of the window.

An attacking midfielder is seen as a priority but Arsenal are also being tipped to sign a new striker as long as they can generate extra funds with the sale of Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah.

Both strikers are in the final year of their contracts at Arsenal and are no closer to signing extensions so the Gunners are ready to cash-in to help make room for a new frontman before the window closes.

Several names have been linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium but Abraham is being touted as Arteta’s primary target with the Express claiming recently that Arsenal are prepared to meet the strikers £125,000-a-week wage demands.

Abraham is reportedly open to the idea of moving across London after being frozen out of the first team since Thomas Tuchel arrived as manager with the 23-year-old playing just 17 minutes of Premier League action during the second part of last season.

However, Arsenal are going to face stiff competition for Abraham’s signature as Di Marzio claims that Atalanta and Roma are also showing a keen interest in signing the out-of-favour Chelsea striker.

The Italian journalist says new Roma boss Jose Mourinho has identified Abraham as the player he wants to replace Edin Dzeko – who’s set for a move to Inter Milan when Romelu Lukaku seals his switch to Chelsea.

So there could be a striker merry-go-round involving Chelsea, Inter and Roma which would leave Arsenal out in the cold and faced with the prospect of having to look elsewhere in their search for a new forward.

However, while Chelsea are ready to cash-in on Abraham to help fund their move for Lukaku, the Metro suggests they Blues are demanding £40m for his services and it remains to be seen whether Roma could afford such a fee. If the Italians struggle to agree terms with Chelsea, then it would open the door for Arsenal to win the race for Abraham’s signature.

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We’ll have to wait and see how things develop over the coming weeks but it’s gearing up to be an exciting end to the transfer window with Abraham almost certain to be on the move before the end of the month.