Arsenal have bid £6.4m for Ianis Stoica, dubbed "the next Kylian Mbappe", according to the owner of the Romanian club he plays for.
“I currently have 7.5 million euros (offer) for Ianis Stoica,” Gigi Becali, owner of Stoica’s club FCSB, told outlet as.ro, before confirming that the bid was indeed from Arsenal. “And I want 10 million plus 20% (from a future transfer),” he added.
The Gunners could well be losing both Eddie Nketiah and Alexandre Lacazette for free at the end of the season. Both strikers are out of contract with the Gunners and have struggled for game-time.
It's thought that Mikel Arteta is keen on another forward for his side, with Fiorentina ace Dusan Vlahovic interesting the club. Tammy Abraham was a target for the north Londoners before his move to Roma.
Arsenal would be left with just Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, 32, and Gabriel Martinelli, 20, at the start of next season as senior options, without securing another striker; Folarin Balogun is a member of the first-team squad but is largely expected to head on loan this January. The Gunners have moved to a model of securing younger players for their side in recent months and 18-year-old Stoica would meet the age criteria.
It wouldn't be the first time either that the club have moved for a Romanian youngster.
Catalin Cirjan joined the Arsenal academy as a 17-year-old scholar from Romanian side Viitorul Domnesti in July 2019. The playmaker is still just 18 and tipped to break into the first team one day.
It's possible, too, that Cirjan alerted Arsenal's scouts to Stoica. Stoica and Cirjan have played together for the Romanian youth teams and are only a week apart in age.
Mika Biereth and Nikolaj Moller are two other well-thought of forwards in the Hale End academy set-up.
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