Arsenal have reportedly taken the lead in the race to sign Dusan Vlahovic from Fiorentina.
The 21-year-old has been in impressive form over the last two seasons and has established himself as one of the world's biggest prospects.
Fiorentina director Joe Barone recently announced that the talented Serbian wouldn't be extending his contract at the club.
Although his current deal doesn't run out until June 2023, his contract feud has sparked a lot of interest throughout Europe, especially from north London rivals Arsenal and Tottenham.
Spurs were heavily linked with Vlahovic in the summer but Daniel Levy's decision to keep wantaway forward Harry Kane at the club meant that there was less of a need to bring a striker in.
However, with Alexandre Lacazette set to leave the Gunners in the summer of 2022 following the expiration of his deal, Arsenal do in fact need a striker, and the latest reports suggest that Vlahovic could be wearing red and white next season.
According to Gianluca Di Marzio, Fiorentina are in talks with the Gunners over a potential move.
The Serie A outfit are understood to have told Arsenal they want £68million (€80m) in order to agree to a sale and the Gunners were happy to oblige, permitting they can achieve that figure through add-ons.
However, the reports haven't gone down well with the club's head coach Vincenzo Italiano, who insists that it's all merely speculation.
“We are talking about a guy who has scored eight goals in 11 appearances even if, during some games, we were not able to provide service properly,” he said, via Sempremilan.com.
“I don’t read papers, I’ve heard about Arsenal, Tottenham, City, Juventus and Milan. They are just rumours and not too credible for me, the guy is highly focused and he wants to do well.”
Vlahovic certainly looks as though he'll be on the move sooner rather than later but there's still more for Arsenal to do in order to make sure that their corner of north London is his next destination.
