Arsenal's Eberechi Eze transfer approach emerges as club prepare first bid

Arsenal are aiming to put together a payment structure that would allow them to secure a sensational move for Eberechi Eze. The Crystal Palace and England winger has been identified as a key target as Mikel Arteta attempts to add to his wide options.

Eze, 27, has a £60m release clause written into his deal at Selhurst Park but that presents Arsenal with a considerable hurdle. The Gunners have already spent heavily on Martin Zubimendi and are on the verge of signing Christian Norgaard from Brentford, while Kepa Arrizabalaga has been signed for a small fee.

They are also pursuing a deal for Sporting Lisbon forward Viktor Gyokeres, who looks set to cost around £56.1m plus £13m in add ons. Should all those deals be done, that would likely see Arsenal spend most of the budget that they had put aside this summer, with any further additions needing to be financed by sales.

But the North London side are aiming to get around that with a more digestible payment structure. As per The Independent, Arsenal want to pay Eze’s release clause in three instalments of around £20m, eventually making that up to £60m.

The England man has two years remaining on his current deal and favours a move to Arsenal should he choose to leave his current side. But there is apparently long-term interest from Liverpool.

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READ MORE: Arsenal chief Andrea Berta flies out for final talks over £70m Viktor Gyokeres transfer

His arrival at the Emirates could potentially put the futures of both Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard in serious doubt. Both wingers have been linked with moves away - Trossard specifically with a switch to Saudi Arabia.

Elsewhere, both Arteta and sporting director Andrea Berta have explained why the Gunners pursued recent signing Zubimendi so strongly. Berta said: “We are so happy to bring Martin to Arsenal and have a lot of pride in finalising this transfer. Martin was a key target for us, and we all know that he is a perfect fit for our squad with the high quality he has.

“We welcome Martin and his family to the club. We look forward to him settling in with his teammates and are very excited to see him playing in an Arsenal shirt.”

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Arteta added: “Martin is a player who will bring a huge amount of quality and football intelligence to our team. He will fit in really well and he has all the attributes to be a key player for us.

“The standard he has consistently performed at over the last few seasons for both club and country is exactly why we are so excited to have him with us. We all welcome Martin and his family to the club.”

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