At A Glance:
- Arsenal are looking to strengthen their centre-forward department this summer.
- Bayer Leverkusen youngster Christian Kofane has emerged as a potential option.
- The 19-year-old’s agent, Eric Depolo, has confirmed the Premier League’s side interest.
Despite signing Viktor Gyokeres last summer from Sporting CP, Arsenal are reportedly still in the market for another striker – and the agent of Christian Kofane has now spoken out about the situation.
Gyokeres arrived at the Emirates Stadium to plenty of fanfare as he was expected to the final piece of the puzzle in Mikel Arteta’s evolution.
The Swede, although he’s bagged a total of 16 goals since the start of the campaign, has largely struggled to adapt to the trials and tribulations of playing in the Premier League.
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It’s unlikely that Arsenal’s decision-makers will give up on the 27-year-old just one year after securing his services – but Bayer Leverkusen’s Kofane is being eyed as a way of ramping up the pressure.
€100m Kofane could be Arsenal’s next striker, Arteta’s a keen admirer
Although adding another face to the left wing position may be priority, a new striker wouldn’t go amiss for the Premier League table-toppers – and Kofane is among their prospective additions.
He joined the German side from Spanish second-division side Albacete for €5.25 million (£4.6 million) last summer.
And his goal-getting exploits have caught the eye of many clubs around Europe, all of whom are looking to bolster their centre-forward ranks.
In an exclusive interview with Daily Arsenal, the centre-forward’s agent, Eric Depolo, has confirmed the Gunners’ interest, insisting that Arteta is a keen admirer of the 19-year-old frontman.
“Yes, Arsenal’s interest is genuine,” he said before adding, “The manager (Mikel Arteta) likes him very much.”
Depolo also added that Barcelona, Bayern Munich and a number of English sides – Chelsea, Newcastle United, Everton and Brentford – are all credited with an interest in his client.
When asked if one club is leading the race, he said: “I think it is too early to say, but due to the fact that the player speaks Spanish, like Mikel Arteta, and that William Saliba is originally from Cameroon, I would say Arsenal are in pole position.”
There have been talks between Depolo and the Gunners he claims. “Yes, there is contact between me and Arsenal.
“But their focus right now is to win the league – from there, everything will start moving. He is a €100 million player. With Kofane, Arsenal will have a top striker for the next 10 years.”
Would Christian Kofane be a shrewd addition?
Shrewd on the basis that they’d be getting ahead of the curve? Sure, but Kofane is expected to cost a pretty penny if a team – Arsenal included – are able to entice him away from the BayArena at the end of the current season.
At the time of writing, the six-cap Cameroon international has plundered seven goals and eight assists in very limited minutes.
Of his 39 appearances across all competitions this term, only four have been a full 90 minutes – two of which were against the Gunners in the Champions League.
Admired for his combination of pace and power, Kofane is a fantastic runner beyond the defence and could prove to be a joy to work with for the likes of Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard.
Far from the finished article, of course, but his recent trajectory proves he’s got what it takes to hustle and bustle in one of Europe’s top five leagues. It’s just whether he can handle the Germany-to-England jump.
Christian Kofane is contracted to Leverkusen until the summer of 2029, hence his lofty price tag, but Arsenal’s centre-forward issues could be resolved (as his agent says) for the next decade or so.
