Arsenal will initiate talks with a French club in the very near future as they attempt to beat Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and a host of other clubs in the race for Desire Doue, according to a report.
Doue is emerging as one of the best teenage attackers in Europe. The left-sided forward – who can also shine in the No 10 role – is only 18 years old but is already a regular in the Rennes first team, having made 43 appearances across all competitions this season.
In that time, Doue has managed four goals and six assists.
Doue is the latest Rennes academy talent to break into their senior squad, following the likes of Eduardo Camavinga and Ousmane Dembele, and he is expected to become a lethal goalscorer over the next few years.
As usually happens with Rennes, they are at risk of losing their best under-21 player to wealthier clubs.
Elsewhere, there is also interest from Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund.
CaughtOffside have now provided an update on the situation. They state that Arsenal will try to get the jump on the likes of Man Utd and Tottenham by entering discussions for Doue first.
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Mikel Arteta rates Doue highly and has told Arsenal to ‘step up’ their chase for him by opening talks ‘in the next few days’.
Although, Arsenal are not alone in planning negotiations for the France U23 international, as Leverkusen and new suitors Napoli are also ready to sit down with Rennes.
Out of those three clubs, Arsenal should be able to offer Doue the best contract proposal. Although, Arteta will have to watch out for Leverkusen, as Xabi Alonso’s side have plenty of pulling power following their record-breaking campaign.
Previous reports have provided little indication on how much Doue might cost, but that has now been revealed.
Rennes would love to keep the forward for a couple more years to make the most out of their academy product and help him develop further. But they will reluctantly consider his sale if a bid worth around €35million (£30m) comes in.
Should Arsenal win the race for Doue, then he could provide the likes of Martin Odegaard, Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli with cover and competition.
It will be tough for Doue to force his way into the Arsenal starting eleven, but he is a player with a very high ceiling and he will have full confidence that he can make an impact at the Emirates
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