Arsenal in pole position to acquire Borussia Dortmund’s Jamie Gittens | OneFootball

North Rhine Westphalia’s Ruhr Nachrichten newspaper reports that Borussia Dortmund attacker Jamie Gittens has already bid farewell to his Bundesliga teammates. The 20-year-old England U21 international is headed back to his native country after the season concludes. Gittens’ stunted development under BVB head coach Niko Kovac led the youngster to hand in a transfer request.

Dortmund recently downplayed outgoing transfer links regarding Gittens. The reality remains that the highly talented professional will take his skills elsewhere once the season concludes. Chelsea are said to have already made contact with Gittens. But city rivals Arsenal could have the better cards in the transfer poker game.

The Premier League’s second-placed team has apparently lobbied harder. According to RN information, the Gunners are said to have the edge in the race. Gittens can very well imagine a move to north London. Dortmund will likely find it difficult to refuse an offer in the €50-60m range.

Gittens has started the last two league fixtures under Kovac and earned high marks in the German press. Kovac himself praised Gittens after his last league goal on matchday 28 against Freiburg. It nevertheless seems as if the slight uptick isn’t enough to sway the Gitttens’ decision.

GGFN | Peter Weis