Arsenal are planning to send Eddie Nketiah on loan, with Bristol City currently leading the chase for the youngster, according to reports.

According to The S*n, Arsenal believe that Nketiah would be better off playing regularly for a team in the Championship than sitting on the bench behind Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang most weeks in North London.

Bristol City are currently leading the race for his signature, although there has even been some interest from Premier League clubs. Bristol are seen as the most likely team to give the 20-year-old regular game time though.

As usual with The S*n, don’t read too much into the reports, but their claims do make some sense in this case.

Despite Nketiah telling the media earlier this month that he wants to stake his claim at Arsenal, there really are no guarantees over playing time given the competition he faces up front. A loan might feel like a step back, but it could allow him to break into Unai Emery’s team properly in 2020/21.

Right now, Nketiah has just received a new first-team squad number (30), and he’s away with the senior side on tour in the USA.

There’s no chance he’ll complete a loan before the tour is over, so we’ll at least get a chance to see him in the opening four games of pre-season. Depending on how that goes, Arsenal will likely make their decision on his future upon the team’s return.