Arsenal have reportedly made opening contact with the representatives of Brentford striker Ivan Toney.
Despite already spending seven months on the sidelines due to a betting suspension - which will run its course in January - Toney will seemingly be at the centre of an intense transfer tussle next month.
The England international is believed to be a prime target for both Arsenal and Chelsea, and Brentford only have him under contract until the end of the 2024-25 campaign.
The Bees remain hopeful of agreeing an extension with their attacking talisman, but director Lee Dykes has conceded that the time may come for Brentford to part ways with Toney "very shortly".
Arsenal are thought to have the edge over London rivals Chelsea in the race to sign the 27-year-old, who is supposedly excited about the prospect of a possible move to the Emirates in 2024.
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According to journalist Rudy Galetti, the Gunners have now touched base with Toney's entourage and are now weighing up whether to approach Brentford with an official offer.
Even though Toney will enter the final 18 months of his deal in January, Brentford have apparently slapped a £100m price tag on the striker's head to ward off interest during the winter window.
Arsenal would not be expected to fork out a nine-figure sum for a player midway through the campaign, but should Brentford's attempts to tie him down to new terms not bear fruit, they would likely be forced to slash their asking price next summer lest they risk losing him on a free transfer.
Toney spent three years on the books at Newcastle United from 2015 to 2018, but he failed to make the grade at St James' Park, only playing four times for the senior Magpies team before leaving for Peterborough United.
After two strong seasons with the Posh, Toney was bought by Brentford for just £4.9m, and the Englishman has now amassed 68 goals and 21 assists in 124 matches for the Bees in all tournaments.
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Toney finished third in the Premier League's Golden Boot race with 20 strikes in the 2022-23 top-flight campaign, only trailing Erling Haaland (36) and Harry Kane (32) in the scoring charts.
Should the England international end up at Arsenal in 2024, he would reinforce an attacking contingent without Folarin Balogun, who was offloaded to Monaco for £35m this summer after a breakthrough season with Reims.
Balogun's exit has left Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah to battle for the number nine spot - a fight which the former has won more often than not - and Nketiah has been linked with a January exit.
However, Arsenal are reportedly not actively looking to sell the Hale End product midway through the season and would be after a club-record £50m sale to consider parting ways with Nketiah.
With Arsenal stealing a march in the race for Toney, Chelsea could prioritise a deal for Napoli's Victor Osimhen and are supposedly prepared to trigger the £112m release clause in his new deal with the Italian champions.
Ben Knapton
