‘Contract agreed’ – Fulham and Everton beaten to £30m marquee signing by Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace are on the verge of completing the marquee signing of Eddie Nketiah from Arsenal in what will be a significant blow for several Premier League clubs, including Fulham and Everton.
The transfer race for the 25-year-old has been one of the Premier League’s most drawn out sagas of the summer window with the Gunners driving a hard bargain to green light an exit for their academy product. Nketiah bagged five Premier League goals last season but only made 10 league starts.
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Last week, it had appeared that Nottingham Forest had muscled their way to being frontrunners with a £30 million bid accepted by Arsenal but that move collapsed with Nketiah not convinced by a switch to The City Ground. Earlier this summer, Marseille appeared to be on the verge of signing the player but couldn’t negotiate the Gunners down from their £30 million valuation.
Now, in a fresh turn of events, it is Crystal Palace who are set to sign Nketiah. That’s according to The Athletic, with the outlet reporting that the Eagles have tabled a £25 million bid with £5 million in add-ons for the player.
The striker is believed to have already agreed personal terms with Crystal Palace, who had been heavily linked with a January move for the forward. The deal comes amid growing reports that Odsonne Edouard could make a return to Celtic this summer, a move which may gather pace following the arrival of Nketiah – Jordan Ayew has also left Selhurst Park this summer, joining Leicester City.
In June, The Sun exclusively reported that Fulham had been in pole position to complete the transfer at that point with Wolves and Everton also named. Those links had continued to bubble on as the weeks ticked by in the summer window.
Nketiah featured on the bench for Arsenal in both of the side’s two opening fixtures of the Premier League campaign this season but did not see any minutes against Wolves or Aston Villa.
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