Arsenal transfer news: Arsenal put faith in Nketiah with five-year deal

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Awarded Henry’s old number 

Arsenal made it clear for the world just how much they valued young striker Eddie Nketiah on Saturday, when the club not only announced that the 22-year-old talent had signed a new five-year deal but that he would also be handed a famous shirt number in the process. Moving from No.30 to No.14 not only indicated that Nketiah would be playing a more prominent role in Mikel Arteta’s first team next season, but also that he would be wearing the same shirt worn by club legend Thierry Henry. 

“I’m delighted Eddie is staying with us,” said Arteta in a statement on the club website. “He represents what we are all about and all the values of the club. We are very happy that he has extended his contract and now we have to get to work and continue to develop the great talent and person that we have in him.” The club’s technical director, Edu, echoed a similar sentiment. “Eddie was released by another club as a young man but has always shown he has the attitude as well as the ability to become a top player,” said the former midfielder. “The fact he’s signed a new contract is an important part of our squad planning for next season and we’re all delighted.”

However, while Arsenal may be delighted with their ability to keep Nketiah at the club, the hard work now begins with a huge amount of pressure not only on the player due to the number he’s inherited but also because the young Englishman is currently the only striker in Arteta’s team, as things stand. So how good is the 22-year-old forward and is he good enough to lead Arsenal’s attacking line next season? 

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Pedri | Barcelona | Spain | Market value: €80M

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Jamal Musiala | Bayern Munich | Germany | Market value: €65M

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Gavi | Barcelona | Spain | Market value: €60M

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Ansu Fati | Barcelona | Spain | Market value: €60M

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Eduardo Camavinga | Real Madrid | France | Market value: €55M

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Yéremy Pino | Villarreal | Spain | Market value: €40M

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Nuno Mendes | Sporting CP/ Paris SG | Portugal | Market value: €40M

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Giovanni Reyna | Dortmund | USA | Market value: €35M

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Karim Adeyemi | RB Salzburg/ Dortmund | Germany | Market value: €35M

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Ryan Gravenberch | Ajax Amsterdam/ Bayern Munich | Netherlands | Market value: €35M

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Josko Gvardiol | RB Leipzig | Croatia | Market value: €35M

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Hugo Ekitike | Stade Reims | France | Market value: €28M

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Harvey Elliott | Liverpool | England | Market value: €22M

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Jérémy Doku | Stade Rennais | Belgium | Market value: €20M

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Luka Sucic | RB Salzburg | Croatia | Market value: €20M

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Nico González | Barcelona | Spain | Market value: €20M

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Castello Lukeba | Lyon | France | Market value: €20M

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Anthony Elanga | Manchester United | Sweden | Market value: €20M

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Adam Hlozek | Sparta Prague/ Bayer Leverkusen | Czech Republic | Market value: €19M

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Rayan Cherki | Lyon | France | Market value: €18M

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Kamaldeen Sulemana | Stade Rennais | Ghama | Market value: €18M

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Aaron Hickey | Bologna | Scotland | Market value: €18M

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Noni Madueke | PSV Eindhoven | England | Market value: €18M

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Arnaud Kalimuendo | Lens (On loan from Paris SG) | France | Market value: €18M

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Destiny Udogie| Hellas Verona/ Udinese Calcio | Italy | Market value: €17M

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Piero Hincapié | Bayer Leverkusen | Ecuador | Market value: €17M

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Georginio Rutter | TSG Hoffenheim | France | Market value: €16M

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Youssoufa Moukoko | Dortmund | Germany | Market value: €15M

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Ilya Zabarnyi | Dynamo Kyiv | Ukraine | Market value: €15M

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Pape Matar Sarr | FC Metz (On loan from Spurs) | Senegal | Market value: €15M

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Mohamed-Ali Cho | SCO Angers | France | Market value: €15M

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Yunus Musah | Valencia | USA | Market value: €15M

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Fábio Silva | Wolves | Portugal | Market value: €15M

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Amad Diallo | Manchester United | Ivory Coast | Market value: €15M

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Fábio Carvalho | Fulham/ Liverpool | Portugal | Market value: €12M

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Elye Wahi | Montpellier | France | Market value: €12M

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Nicola Zalewski | Roma | Poland | Market value: €12M

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Nico Williams | Athletic | Spain | Market value: €12M

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Malo Gusto | Lyon | France | Market value: €12M

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Jakub Kaminski | Lech Poznan/ Wolfsburg | Poland | Market value: €10M

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Giorgio Scalvini | Atalanta BC | Italy | Market value: €10M

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Benjamin Sesko | RB Salzburg | Slovenia | Market value: €10M

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Ansgar Knauff | Eintracht Frankfurt (On loan from Dortmund) | Germany | Market value: €10M

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Aster Vranckx | VfL Wolfsburg | Belgium | Market value: €10M

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Wilfried Gnonto | FC Zürich | Italy | Market value: €10M

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Ilaix Moriba | Valencia (On loan from RB Leipzig) | Guinea | Market value: €9M

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Tanguy Nianzou | Bayern Munich | France | Market value: €9M

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Brian Brobbey | Ajax Amsterdam (On loan from RB Leipzig) | Netherlands | Market value: €9M

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Kacper Kozlowski | Union SG (On loan from Brighton) | Poland | Market value: €8M

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Becir Omeragic | FC Zürich | Switzerland | Market value: €8M

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Nathanaël Mbuku | Stade Reims | France | Market value: €8M

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Fabian Rieder | BSC Young Boys | Switzerland | Market value: €8M

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Joe Scally | Borussia Mönchengladbach | USA | Market value: €8M

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Devyne Rensch | Ajax Amsterdam | Netherlands | Market value: €8M

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Eliot Matazo | Monaco | Belgium | Market value: €8M

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Francisco Conceição | Porto | Portugal | Market value: €8M

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Jan Thielmann | 1.FC Köln | Germany | Market value: €7.5M

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Lucien Agoumé | Stade Brestois (On loan from Inter) | France | Market value: €7M

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Tiago Tomás | VfB Stuttgart (On loan from Sporting CP) | Portugal| Market value: €7M

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Luca Netz | Borussia Mönchengladbach | Germany | Market value: €6.5M

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Felix Afena-Gyan | Roma | Ghana | Market value: €6M

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Maarten Vandevoordt | Genk | Belgium | Market value: €6M

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Joe Gelhardt | Leeds | England | Market value: €6M

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Mohamed Daramy | Ajax Amsterdam | Denmark | Market value: €6M

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Ki-Jana Hoever | Wolves | Netherlands | Market value: €6M

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Paulo Bernardo | Benfica | Portugal | Market value: €5M

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Brandon Soppy | Udinese Calcio | France | Market value: €5M

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Sebastiano Esposito | FC Basel (On loan from Inter) | Italy | Market value: €5M

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Henrique Araújo | Benfica B | Portugal | Market value: €5M

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Yan Couto | SC Braga (On loan from Manchester City U23) | Brazil | Market value: €5M

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Stipe Biuk | Hajduk Split | Croatia | Market value: €4.5M

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Maxime Estève | Montpellier | France | Market value: €4.5M

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Álex Balde | Barcelona B | Spain | Market value: €4M

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Nemanja Jovic | Partizan | Serbia | Market value: €4M

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Janis Antiste | Spezia Calcio | France | Market value: €4M

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Amar Dedic | Wolfsberger AC (On loan from RB Salzburg) | Bosnia-Herzegovina | Market value: €4M

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Anouar Ait El Hadj | Anderlecht | Belgium | Market value: €4M

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Lazar Samardzic | Udinese Calcio | Germany | Market value: €3.5M

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Isaac Lihadji | LOSC Lille | France | Market value: €3.5M

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Radu Dragusin | Salernitana (On loan from Juventus) | Romania | Market value: €3.5M

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Tomas Suslov | FC Groningen | Slovakia | Market value: €3M

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Jayden Braaf | Manchester City U23/ Dortmund | Netherlands | Market value: €3M

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Matteo Cancellieri | Hellas Verona | Italy | Market value: €3M

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Raúl Moro | Lazio | Spain | Market value: €2.8M

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Matías Soulé | Juventus U23 | Argentina | Market value: €2.5M

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Filip Stevanovic | Heerenveen (On loan from Manchester City) | Serbia | Market value: €2.5M

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Cisse Sandra | Club Brugge | Belgium | Market value: €1.5M

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Luka Romero | Lazio | Argentina | Market value: €1M

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Rodrigo Ribeiro | Sporting U19 | Portugal | Market value: €1M

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Cher Ndour | Benfica B | Italy | Market value: €1M

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Simone Pafundi | Udinese U19 | Italy | Market value: –

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Diego Moreira | Benfica U19 | Portugal | Market value: –

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Moustapha Cissé | Atalanta Bergamo U19 | Guinea | Market value: –

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A star at youth level – but is Nketiah ready to make the step up? 

Arsenal’s belief in Nketiah is clearly evident from the jersey he’s been given and the length of his new contract and when we look at his goal scoring record to date we can see why. It first became clear to see at youth level, where the striker bagged no less than 16 goals and three assists in around 1200 minutes of football for England’s youth sides, alongside an equally impressive record of 0.87 goals per 90 minutes in the Premier League 2. 

Eddie Nketiah's record at Arsenal

However, what undoubtedly gets Arsenal fans excited about Nketiah is the goals he’s already managed to bag in such a short period of time for the first team. Although the youngster has had to settle for substitutions off the bench, he’s still picked up 23 goals and 12 assists in 3743 minutes of first team football at Arsenal. Which works out at a seriously impressive 0.55 goals per 90 for the club. 

The question that still remains is whether Nketiah can maintain or even improve on that average when he starts games for Arsenal and becomes their main source of goals. Not only will the player have to handle a huge amount of pressure but also score goals from scratch, rather than picking off teams when his team have perhaps already won the game. But if the striker can maintain that average as a starter for Arteta’s first team, Arsenal may have a new star on their hands worthy of Henry’s old jersey. 


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