Toney decision made! Brentford striker's fate decided as Arsenal and Chelsea battle for England star
Robin Bairner
- 24 Nov 2023 08:16 GMT
- 3 min read
Brentford striker Ivan Toney has been linked with a transfer to Arsenal and Chelsea during the forthcoming window, but the England forward is set to be denied his wish.
Toney has yet to feature this season as he sits out due to a ban prompted by illegal gambling. He will be back in action in early January, which has prompted transfer interest from a string of clubs seeking a centre-forward.
Arsenal are after a goal scorer in the wake of Gabriel Jesus’ confession that finding the net is not his strong point, while Chelsea have been seeking a prolific No.9 for months, with Nicolas Jackson’s relatively slow start to life in the Premier League doing them few favours.
Toney wants to move, too. He has ambitions of playing in the Champions League and becoming a regular member of the England national team, and at 27 years old, the window is closing for him to get the type of big transfer that he craves.
According to The Mirror, though, Brentford have told him that he will have to remain at the cub until the summer.
It is said it would take a huge offer to prompt the Bees into a sale, something that Arsenal’s savvy approach to the transfer market and Chelsea’s focus on signing up-and-coming talent would suggest is unlikely to happen at this juncture. The Gunners are already prioritising Juventus' Dusan Vlahovic as their main No.9 target in any case.
Ramsdale told to leave Arsenal
Arsenal face a further transfer headache over goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, who has dropped to second choice in the Gunners’ pecking order behind David Raya.
Ramsdale will get the opportunity to impress when Arteta takes his side to face Brentford on Saturday – a match that the Spaniard cannot play in due to the Bees being his parent club.
Former Liverpool and England goalkeeper David James has advised the understudy to make a move if he is not handed back the gloves on a permanent basis.
“If he has any chance of giving Gareth Southgate a headache over the goalkeeping selection, he won’t be doing that sat on the bench at Arsenal,” James pointed out to The Mirror, focusing on Ramsdale’s Euro 2024 ambitions.
There is no indication, however, that Arteta will allow Ramsdale to leave.
