Arsenal still in contact with ‘€100m’ striker’s agent

Newcastle United have joined Arsenal in the race to sign Bayer Leverkusen striker Christian Kofane, according to a report from Germany.

German outlet Bild report that Arsenal have had Bayer Leverkusen striker Christian Kofane on their radar for a while, and the club remain in close contact with the player’s agents, Eric Depolo and Erkan Alkan of Afrosport.

Bild quote Depolo as saying in April: “Arsenal’s interest is serious. With Kofane, Arsenal would have a top striker for the next ten years. He’s a €100 million player.”

But the Gunners aren’t the only English club in the race, with Bild adding that Newcastle United also want the player.

Bild report that it’s questionable whether Kofane would actually want to move to Newcastle, particularly given the team’s failure to qualify for the Champions League.

A concrete offer from Arsenal would reportedly be a different story, presumably a much more attractive potential destination for the player.

But Bayer Leverkusen don’t want to let the player go after just one year, so the price would have to be right. Bild claim no one in the squad is ‘unsellable’, but it would seemingly take a major bid like the €100m the player’s agent mentioned.

19-year-old Kofane probably hasn’t quite justified a €100m (£85.6m) fee at this stage of his career, after just one season of top-flight football.

The striker scored seven goals and assisted nine in 44 appearances at centre-forward for Bayer Leverkusen last season, having scored eight goals and assisted one in 20 appearances in the Spanish second-tier with Albacete Balompie the previous year.

Those are great numbers for a teenager, but don’t necessarily translate to a top performer at a side fighting for the Premier League title. The potential is there, but Arsenal might want a little more before committing such a big fee.

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