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Journalist Ryan Taylor has said that Arsenal are unlikely to sign Brentford striker Ivan Toney in the ongoing January transfer window.
Toney, 27, returns on Wednesday (January 17) from an eight-month ban by the FA for breaching betting rules. The Brentford man had a solid campaign in the Premier League last season, bagging 20 goals and four assists in 33 games. A year earlier, in his first season in the competition, Toney had contributed 12 goals and five assists in 33 games.
The striker is contracted with Brentford till the summer of 2025 but is widely expected to leave his current side before that. Arsenal have been touted to be one of his targets, but FFP regulations could hinder their pursuit of Toney.
Taylor said on The Spurs Chat podcast (as per TBR) that the Gunners told him that don't have enough FFP leeway to snap up Toney in January:
“Ivan Toney is expected to leave Brentford at the end of the season. My understanding is that he will stay at Brentford this January. There has been interest from Arsenal, but my latest information from Arsenal is that there’s just not enough money and finances in terms of FFP records to pull off a deal like this."
Apart from the Gunners, Manchester United, Newcastle and Chelsea are also expected to spend miserly this month due to FFP regulations.
What's next for Arsenal?
Arsenal have stuttered in recent weeks. Their 2-0 home loss to Liverpool in their FA Cup opener on January 7 was their third straight defeat across competitions.
The Gunners had closed out the year with successive league losses to West Ham United and Fulham. In the process, they squandered the chance to go atop the standings and slumped to fourth, five points behind leaders Liverpool after 20 games.
Mikel Arteta's side will next be in action at home to Crystal Palace in the league on Saturday (January 20) before closing out the month with a trip to Nottingham Forest on January 31.
