According to Gazet van Antwerpen (via SportWitness), Arsenal are considered front-runners ahead of Liverpool to sign PSV Eindhoven winger Johan Bakayoko this summer.
The Gunners are aiming to add more quality to their attack ahead of next season in order to challenge Manchester City for the Premier League title. Bakayoko has been linked with Liverpool for some time but Gazet van Antwerpen claim that Arsenal are the most concrete track and the situation could evolve positively.
PSV are prepared to sell their prized asset for £38 million. It is reported that a transfer could be sorted after Euro 2024.
Quality winger
Bakayoko has been touted to move to the Premier League for a while. He was on the radar of Brentford last summer and could have joined them on deadline day. However, he decided to turn down their proposal to play in the Champions League with PSV.
The Belgian winger could consider leaving PSV this time around, considering the high-profile interest. Liverpool are firm admirers of him, but Arsenal will be hoping to prise him away ahead of the Merseyside giants in the forthcoming weeks.
The 21-year-old is a right-sided attacker and had a superb season with PSV with 14 goals and 14 assists from 48 outings. Arsenal may see him as a direct deputy to Bukayo Saka, who has had the right wing position on his own over recent years.
While Arsenal have had competition between Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard on the left wing, they are currently lacking the same on the right. Bakayoko would be a quality candidate to deputise and also compete with Saka for places.
Arsenal will need to improve on their 89-point tally from last season to boost their chances of winning the league. Adding more quality in attack will ensure that manager Mikel Arteta has better options to call off the bench to win games from losing situations.
