Arsenal ready to battle Chelsea for €92m striker signing

Arsenal have reportedly joined the race to sign Bournemouth forward Eli Junior Kroupi, who is currently being tracked by every top Premier League club ahead of the upcoming summer transfer window.

The 19-year-old joined Andoni Iraola’s side last year and he has enjoyed a sublime debut season at the Vitality Stadium, scoring eight goals in just 21 Premier League appearances so far this term.

Kroupi’s form has unsurprisingly been noticed by a number of top teams and he is expected to be at the heart of a major transfer battle when the 2026 summer window opens in June.

The Sun have reported that Bournemouth have initiated talks over a “bumper new deal” with Kroupi’s representatives, in a bid to ward off any suitors, while they claim that Chelsea, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain are all eager to sign the France U21 international.

In addition, Arsenal, Aston Villa, Manchester City, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur have now expressed their interest in the former Lorient forward, according to TEAMtalk.

It’s understood that Bournemouth value Kroupi at a whopping €92 million (£80m), with the Cherries keen to make him their most expensive sale of all time if he departs the club later this year.

However, they are determined to retain his services beyond this summer and negotiations over a new contract have reportedly already begun.

Eli Junior Kroupi transfer battle

Although Arsenal have identified Kroupi as a potential target for this summer, TEAMtalk state that PSG have emerged as the strongest suitors for the Bournemouth attacker as they look to bolster their forward line ahead of 2026-27.

It’s claimed that Luis Enrique’s side have stepped up background checks on Kroupi and they are prepared to intensify their pursuit of his signature after missing out on his signature during his time at Lorient.

However, Bournemouth are reportedly willing to double Kroupi’s salary in an attempt to retain his services for at least another season.

Football transfer news headlines today

TRANSFER RUMOURS: Arsenal handed major Alvarez update as opening bid prepared

Fabrizio Romano Transfer News: Manager UPDATES, Sterling SURPRISE, Darwin Nunez DROPPED

Chelsea plot opening offer for Bruno Guimaraes

Klopp ‘arrives’ at Real Madrid with €200m transfer demand

The FootballTransfers app

Check out FootballTransfers’ new app for all of football’s big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.

The FootballTransfers app is available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store. Download here:

•Google Play

•App Store