Arsenal Open Talks Over £8.5m Striker But Face Competition From Spurs

Although the summer transfer window is officially closed that doesn’t stop clubs working hard behind the scenes to prepare for future signings, so we’ll keep you up-to-date with all the latest gossip. Today, Arsenal and Tottenham battle for a French striker.

Arsenal have open preliminary talks over the signing of Auxerre striker Paul-Georges Ntep but will face stiff competition for his signature from rivals Tottenham, according to the Express.

The report claims that Gunners boss Arsene Wenger has had his scouts watch the highly-rated forward on several occasions this season as he looks to strengthen his options in attack this January to help aid his title-push.

It seems the Frenchman has now made his interest official with the Express suggesting that Arsenal chiefs have opened formal talks with Auxerre over an £8.5million deal that would see Ntep move to the Emirates when the transfer window re-opens in January.

Auxerre are currently in financial difficulty so may need to make a significant sale this winter in order to balance the books and Ntep is one of their most sought-after talents.

The newspaper states that Arsenal’s north London rivals Tottenham, as well as Aston Villa, Lille and Saint-Etienne, are all also monitoring the 21-year-old closely but have so far made it clear they won’t pay above £5m for the youngster – which won’t be enough to persuade the Ligue 1 club into selling.

This leaves Arsenal in the driving seat to secure his signature, however, it appears Ntep isn’t the only striker Wenger is looking at and the Cameroon-born ace could be a fall-back option in-case the Gunners supremo misses out on one of his other main targets.

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Which striker would Arsenal and Spurs fans like to see their club sign in January? Share your views below.