Arsenal are leading the race to sign Levante striker Etta Eyong according to Spanish publication Sport.
Eyong’s form in La Liga has not gone unnoticed with Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona also keeping tabs on the young striker.
The 22-year-old, who moved to Levante from Villarreal over the summer, has scored six goals and provided three assists across 12 league outings this season.
Five of those have come for the Frogs, who are battling to beat the drop and sit second bottom in Spain’s top tier after the opening 12 matches.
Even so, Eyong’s performances for Levante attracted a number of Europe’s heavy hitters ahead of the January transfer window.
Arsenal leading race for Eyong
And the Gunners are now the rumoured frontrunners for the Cameroonian hitman, who has a modest £35m release clause in his contract.
Arsenal are looking to bolster their frontline in the next few months with injuries again hurting the north London side’s attack.
Gabriel Jesus is a long-term absentee for Mikel Arteta, while Kai Havertz and new signing Viktor Gyokeres have both endured respective spells on the sidelines this season.
Mikel Merino has again been used as an auxiliary forward by Arteta, which he’ll hope to avoid as a long-term solution.
FIFA regulations rules out January switch
The issue for Arsenal, however, is that FIFA rules stipulate that Eyong is only able to play for two clubs in a single season.
Having made three league appearances for Villarreal before his move to Levante, Eyong is not permitted to play for a third club until the start of next season.
As such, Arsenal may look to steal a march on rivals for the striker’s signature by securing his services and allowing him to remain at Levante until the summer.
While the Gunners are the supposed favourites for Eyong, the player himself has admitted that it would be ‘dream’ to one day play for London rivals Chelsea.
'A dream to play for Chelsea'
The Blues are often on the lookout for the best young players on the continent, and the revelation may see Chelsea enter the race for the frontman.
“Growing up, Chelsea was the English team I probably watched the most because of Drogba, and Eto'o was there was a year as well,” Eyong recently told GiveMeSport.
“Chelsea have often signed incredible African players. There are so many big clubs in England, but as for [joining] Chelsea, why not? It would be a dream for me to play for Chelsea.”
Arsenal and Chelsea lock horns at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League at the end of the month.
The Gunners face a testing return to action next week as they follow up the North London Derby with the welcome of Bavarian powerhouse Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
