Arsenal to do battle with Man Utd for champions league hat-trick hero

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Unai Emerey’s Arsenal are ‘keenly tracking the progress’ of Red Bull Salzburg’s teenage sensation Erling Braut Håland according to a report, but will face stiff competition from perennial rivals Manchester United for the Norwegian star’s signature.

Håland became just the fourth teenager to score a hat-trick in the champions league, following in the footsteps of Wayne Rooney (Man Utd), Yakubu (Maccabi Haifa) and Raul (Real Madrid).

The Austrian side’s eye-opening 6-2 victory over Genk has drawn the attention of a host of Europe’s leading clubs to the talents being nurtured at Salzburg, with the club having a reputation for breeding talented youngsters having developed the likes of Sadio Mane and Naby Keita previously.

Now, a report from Football London claim Arsenal have ‘extensively watched the Austrian Bundesliga in recent months’ and were ‘in place for a 5-1 Salzburg win away to Tyrol’ in which Håland was on the scoresheet.

To secure the future signing of Håland, however, the Gunners will have to beat out Ole Gunnar Solksjaer’s Man Utd after Austrian newspaper Salzburger Nachrichten reported that the Red Devils had sent scouts to the game amid long-standing interest from Solskjaer himself.

Solskjaer is familiar with the forward having given him his first taste of senior football when in charge at Molde, and that may well give the Reds the upper hand in transfer dealings.

Red Bull Salzburg Genk TEAMtalk

Meanwhile, a second Salzburg star who may be on the move is Hungarian playmaker Dominik Szoboszlai.

The 18-year-old also found the net in their crushing 6-2 victory, and the Football London report states that ‘The Gunners have already registered an interest in Szoboszlai during the summer.’

The article continues: ‘[The] initial approach was with a view to a move at the end of the coming season with the 18-year-old keen to gain experience with Salzburg before moving on to Europe’s top leagues.’

Szoboszlai’s name is one to keep an eye on over the next 12 months, with Italian powerhouses Juventus and Inter Milan both registering interest in the starlet as well.

 

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