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Arsenal 'contact striker's camp' as they make first move for the next Samuel Eto'o
Oct 08 2026 06:48 · By www.football.london · 16 Reads
Arsenal are already making moves in the transfer market before the next window opens in January
Mikel Arteta has set his sights on Bayer Leverkusen's Christian Kofane as Arsenal have reportedly made contact with the striker's agents.
The Gunners spent less than their main Premier League rivals in the summer window, signing five players for around £170million. Now, it looks like they are making plans for January with Kofane's representatives confirming Arsenal's interest.
SportBild reports that the north London outfit have been in touch for some time but they are not alone. Manchester United are also keen on Kofane and have spoken to his representatives.
A bonus for both clubs is that the striker's negotiations with Bayer have stalled as the German side hopes to offer him an improved contract. Kofane's current deal runs until 2029 and he earns around £850,000 annually, but the Bundesliga outfit wants to increase this to over £3m a year to tie him down until 2031.
Kofane has been compared to the iconic Samuel Eto'o by former French striker Samuel Lobe, who played for Lille and Red Star. Lobe stated that the 20-year-old reminded him of the ex-Cameroon international and believes he is destined for great things.
Speaking after Kofane scored the winner against Mozambique in the Africa Cup of Nations last year, Lobe said: "He (Kofane) reminds me of Eto’o in his playing style. He is a talented young player. He will go far if he keeps up this momentum."
Across 50 appearances for Bayer, Kofane has scored 10 goals and assisted nine times. He has earned seven caps for his country, scoring two goals at AFCON and reaching the quarter-finals in his first major tournament for Cameroon.
Other reports in Germany claimed that Newcastle, Everton and Aston Villa were interested but this didn't amount to concrete movement. When asked about his future, Kofane has remained coy about his plans.
Speaking during the summer window, he said: "As I said, at the moment I'm focused on playing football. But now that you've brought it up, I suppose I'll have to start thinking about it."
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