Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur are interested in signing Ivan Toney but according to Martin Keown, Arsenal should go after him during the January transfer window.
Ivan Toney will finish his ban and return in January and with so many big clubs interested in him, Brentford are willing to cash in on their striker. Toney has time and again made it clear that he wishes to play for one of the top clubs in the Premier League and Keown feels, he could just be the player that Mikel Arteta is looking for.
“I get it, Ivan Toney is a prolific goalscorer. I don’t think I’ve seen a penalty taker better than him,” Keown said on talkSPORT.
“Now they’re looking if they (Brentford) can deal without him. But they’re probably realising that there’s a huge bid about to come in for him, and Arsenal will probably be top of the list for that.
“Again for me, it’s about whether the structure of the team are ready for that and they can cope. He’s going to be an out-and-out striker, he’s not going to be popping back in the same way Jesus does.”
Martin Keown is also a bit sceptical about the Gunners signing Ivan Toney but it looks like Mikel Arteta has made up his mind. Arsenal have identified Toney as one of their primary targets and they are ready to battle Chelsea and Spurs for his signature.
The Bees want around £60 million for the England international and all three sides are capable of paying this amount. Chelsea are at the bottom of the pack because they have started the season poorly plus they have a really big squad but Spurs are currently sitting at the top of the Premier League table and if they can maintain that position until January, they will be right up there with Arsenal. Tottenham’s new manager is working wonders at the club and with Harry Kane gone, Daniel Levy has the money to go head-on for the Bees man.
Some rumours are suggesting that Toney wants to play for Arsenal but it’s still early days and the other two teams are yet to make any concrete moves.
Arsenal are also monitoring Victor Osimhen but the Napoli striker will be really hard to sign plus, he will only be up for sale at the end of this season. However, if the Gunners can bring in Ivan Toney, he will solve their centre-forward problem and that too at a much lower fee.
Toney has been with Brentford since 2020 and last season, the striker netted 20 goals in 33 Premier League games but because he’s serving his ban, he is yet to feature this campaign.
The 27-year-old will not only ensure goals(at least 20 in all competitions), something that has been hard to come by from their primary centre-forward but the big lad is also great at link-up plays and holding the ball. He is a tireless runner who will work superbly in an Arsenal team that likes to press intensely at the top of the pitch. Jesus and Kai Havertz have both failed to lead the line which is why Arteta is out in the market for a new centre forward and at least on paper, Ivan Toney ticks all the boxes in terms of being the final piece of the puzzle.
