Arsenal have been handed a huge problem in their attempt to sign PSV winger Cody Gakpo this summer as Manchester United are set to join the race, according to reports. The Netherlands international has continued to impress for both club and country, offering plenty of potential too at just 23-years-old.
football.london understands that the Gunners still hold an interest in Gakpo, with the versatile forward admired by manager Mikel Arteta. The PSV star is also said to be keen on a move to the Premier League, though his current focus is making the Netherlands squad for the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
Should Arteta manage to land the young forward, it could be the perfect end to a seemingly successful summer break for the head coach. A near-perfect pre-season was backed up with two wins from the club's first two games of the campaign, with five new faces also joining the squad.
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Key areas such as a starting centre-forward and depth in goal, defence and midfield have all been addressed through those signings made so far. Additions out wide have been less plentiful so far though, with Arsenal yet to move on from their failed bid for Raphinha earlier in the window.
The need for another wide-man may be further increased, with reports claiming that club-record signing Nicolas Pepe could leave on loan amid interest from Ligue 1 club OGC Nice. Gakpo could be the perfect solution to remedy both of those things, but the Gunners are yet to make a move.
That hesitancy may be costly though, as the Athletic reports that the 23-year-old is on the club's radar as a potential option before the end of the window. That's only as an alternative to Ajax and Brazil star Antony though, who the Red Devils had an €80million (£68million) bid rejected for.
It remains to be seen if the Gunners or United finally make their move, but it could be yet another high-profile clash in the transfer window between two old foes.
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