Ivan Toney has informed Brentford that he would like to leave in January, amid interest from Arsenal and Chelsea.
The 27-year-old is currently suspended until January 17 after being found guilty of gambling breaches, but his lengthy absence has not put his suitors off.
Toney netted an impressive 20 goals in the Premier League last season. He finished in third place in the goal-scoring charts, trailing only Harry Kane (30) and Erling Haaland (36).
It is no surprise to see some of Europe’s biggest clubs chasing his signature. Arsenal and Chelsea have been heavily linked with Toney, as well as Manchester United.
Man Utd, however, will be forced to look for alternatives in January as Toney’s £80m price tag is too expensive for them due to Financial Fair Play.
TEAMtalk exclusively revealed earlier that Erik ten Hag has identified four cheaper alternatives to the Brentford star.
Arsenal and Chelsea remain firmly in the race for Toney, though, and now it seems that the player himself has boosted their chances of luring him away from Brentford this winter.
Toney has now personally told Brentford that he wishes to move on to another club in January, TEAMtalk understands.
Arsenal and Chelsea will no doubt be pleased with this, as they are both keen to bring in a new, prolific centre-forward this winter.
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Bees boss Thomas Frank shared his thoughts on the striker’s future in his press conference earlier today. “He’s a top player, one of our most important last year.
“Any player who scores 20+ Premier League goals are important, so of course I would prefer to have him here,” Frank said.
When asked if Toney does want to leave in January, Frank said: “I hope not. I want him to stay. Ivan is happy… what happens in the future is impossible to predict.”
Eddie Nketiah scored an impressive hat-trick against Sheffield United last weekend, but questions have been raised over whether he and Gabriel Jesus are prolific enough to win a Premier League title.
As for Chelsea, summer signing Nico Williams has shown flashes, but has still only scored just two Premier League goals this season. Fellow new addition Christopher Nkunku is yet to feature in a competitive match for the Blues due to injury.
