Arsenal are interested in Genk teenager Konstantinos Karetsas, but talk of nearing an agreement for the signing appears to be premature.
Earlier this week, reports emerged from Greece that Arsenal were heavily pursuing Konstantinos Karetsas of Genk, even claiming the Gunners could be nearing a £38m agreement to sign the 17-year-old.
James McNicholas confirms for The Athletic that Arsenal are among the clubs tracking Karetsas, watching his recent progress closely, but he denies talk of an agreement.
McNicholas claims there hasn’t been any contact between Arsenal and Genk, and the Gunners still need to decide whether to progress their interest into a formal move.
Genk are reportedly expecting a fee of €30-40m (£25.3-33.7m), and Karetsas wouldn’t be eligible to join Arsenal immediately.
As a 17-year-old from overseas, the youngster would either need to be loaned back to Genk until he turns 18, or a deal reached this summer could simply be delayed until then.
Karetsas will be 18 in November, so the earliest he could actually play for Arsenal would be the January transfer window in 2026.
Given Arsenal’s goal this summer appears to be to add a few key players to help to push the team over the line to win trophies now, spending approximately £30m on an ineligible teenager doesn’t seem like the best use of funds.
But if the deal can be agreed and delayed by a year, perhaps that would allow Arsenal to secure a top talent for the future without disrupting their plans for the current window.
Karetsas made 39 appearances (23 starts) for Genk this season, scoring three goals and assisting four from his position in midfield. He was called up by the Greek national team in March, making his debut and scoring in a Nations League play-off win over Scotland.