Chelsea could suffer blow in race for Arsenal target if he signs new contract

Brentford are set to offer Ivan Toney new deal amid Chelsea interest

Chelsea and Arsenal have suffered a big blow in their pursuit of Ivan Toney, who is set to receive a new deal from Brentford to keep the striker until the summer of 2024.

According to transfer expert Simon Philips, (h/t Express), the 27-year-old will get a fresh deal with a larger salary and a release fee that won’t be less than £100 million.

Arsenal are heavily keen on signing the former Newcastle United forward, despite having Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah. The Blues are believed to be considering him as well, but it’s unclear if they would prefer to sign him over Victor Osimhen during the upcoming January transfer window.

Brentford set to offer Ivan Toney a fresh deal.
Brentford set to offer Ivan Toney a fresh deal.

Besides Chelsea and Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur are also looking to find a reliable forward and are failing to replace Harry Kane, who joined Bayern Munich last summer.

Toney is currently serving an eight-month ban after breaching the Premier League betting rule and will return to action in January. Now it remains to be seen if he will sign a new contract or join other Premier League sides.

It’s also unclear how much the Bees will include in his release clause since a striker who turns 28 in March would find anything above £80 million to be excessive.

 Ivan Toney will have a big decision to make in January.  (Photo by Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images)
Ivan Toney will have a big decision to make in January. (Photo by Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images)

Osimhen is also our top target, so we should try to sign him rather than Toney. In order to maximise their profit from Toney’s departure, the Bees will take full advantage of teams who are eager to sign him. As such, we should be ready to refrain from overpaying for him.

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We have experience this; therefore, we should exercise caution during the transfer window rather than making impulsive expenditures. Since Toney is a Premier League product, if we are able to recruit him, he should not need much time to demonstrate his tenacious goal-scoring ability. But let’s wait and see how things work out in January, with Spurs and the Gunners also in the hunt.