Arsenal battle Barcelona for lively Red Bull attacker as Edu ‘sends scout’ to watch top performance
Arsenal and Barcelona are reportedly both pursuing Oscar Gloukh, an exciting young attacker shining in the Red Bull system.
Plenty of players have impressed at Red Bull clubs before moving to the Premier League for big money, including Dominik Szoboszlai, Ibrahima Konate, Josko Gvardiol, Christopher Nkunku and Naby Keita. The Red Bull model is built on signing the best young talent in Europe before selling them on for huge profit, allowing them to invest yet more money in their academy and scouting department.
Gloukh is the latest player who could make the switch from Red Bull Salzburg to England. He is a 19-year-old midfielder who mainly operates in a No 10 role but can also play as a No 8 if needed.
The teenager is one of the most exciting young players to come out of Israel in recent years. After forcing his way into the Maccabi Tel Aviv first team, he joined Salzburg for €7million in January 2023.
Gloukh spent the second half of last season getting used to life at his new club, and it is this campaign where he has started to shine. So far, the playmaker has managed six goals and seven assists in 28 appearances, which includes Champions League group-stage goals against Benfica and Inter Milan.
Gloukh’s excellent performances and his great potential have alerted Europe’s elite to the possibility of landing him. Manchester United, Liverpool and Aston Villa were linked last year, but now it is Arsenal who are pushing to bring the starlet to the Premier League.
As per Football Transfers, Arsenal first became interested in him earlier this month and Gunners sporting director Edu has now officially sent a scout to watch him in action.
The Arsenal official was in attendance for Salzburg’s 1-1 draw with FC Blau-Weiss Linz in the Austrian Bundesliga on Saturday. While Gloukh did not manage to notch another goal contribution, he still put on a show for the Arsenal scout in the crowd.
Oscar Gloukh impresses Arsenal official
In a full 90-minute performance, Gloukh registered five key passes, had four shots and won 71 per cent of his duels, while also garnering 81 touches.
It is likely that the Arsenal scout has now returned to North London to give Edu and Mikel Arteta his positive report. This could prompt Arsenal to step up their pursuit of the youngster by tabling an official bid, though it is not guaranteed that he will end up joining the title chasers.
The report adds that Barcelona are also keeping tabs on Gloukh as they feel he could become a vital player for them in the future.
As such, any Arsenal offer for Gloukh – who has already won 12 caps for Israel despite his tender age – is likely to result in a bidding war with Barca.
The good news for Arsenal fans is that the superior spending power of Premier League clubs means Arteta’s side can be considered frontrunners in this transfer hunt. Just look at Lucas Bergvall, who was close to joining Barca in January only to end up at Arsenal’s local rivals Tottenham Hotspur.
