Arsenal preparing £26 million January offer to sign highly-rated ex-Manchester City forward: Reports

Arsenal are reportedly interested in lodging a £26 million offer to snap up Borussia Dortmund forward Jamie Bynoe-Gittens next January.

The Gunners were one of the most active clubs in the recently concluded summer transfer window, splashing close to £200 million on three new players. They roped in Declan Rice, Kai Havertz, and Jurrien Timber from West Ham United, Chelsea, and Ajax respectively.

Now, according to Fichajes, Arsenal have expressed an interest in signing Bynoe-Gittens to bolster their offensive depth. Gunners manager Mikel Arteta is confident that the winger will become a star in the future.

However, Borussia Dortmund are unwilling to let go of the 19-year-old Englishman. They view the right-footed star as a potential superstar and are said to be keen to hold on to him for a couple of more campaigns.

As a result, the north London outfit are reportedly set to launch a £26 million move to convince the Bundesliga outfit about selling Bynoe-Gittens next year. They have earmarked the ex-Manchester City youth player as a fine rotational option on both of their flanks.

Bynoe-Gittens, who spent two years in Manchester City's academy before moving to Dortmund on a free transfer, could decide to seal a permanent move to Arsenal in the future. He would provide competition to Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard.

Since making his senior debut in April 2022, Bynoe-Gittens has scored three goals and provided one assist in 25 matches for Dortmund.

Arsenal monitoring 19-year-old centre-back

In his column for Caught Offside, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano claimed that the Gunners have been hot on the heels of Sporting CP teenager Ousmane Diomande for quite a while. He wrote:

"Arsenal have been linked strongly with Sporting Lisbon defender Ousmane Diomande by the Portuguese press. I'm told that he's a player they've been tracking for a long time, but it's not only them. There are three or four clubs monitoring Diomande for the future, but it was never a negotiation this summer, as he wasn't for sale."

Diomande, 19, has popped up as one of the top defensive talents since the start of this year. He has scored two goals in 22 games for Sporting since arriving for over £6 million from FC Midtjylland earlier this January.

Should the Ivorian join Arsenal in this campaign's winter transfer window, he could prove to be a great signing for them. He could displace Gabriel Magalhaes to form a partnership with William Saliba in the near future.