Arsenal rival Spurs for Slimani

Arsenal will go head-to-head with Tottenham Hotspur in the pursuit of highly-rated Sporting Lisbon striker Islam Slimani. The Algerian has been in fine form for club and country over the past year.

Recent speculation suggested that Spurs were close to wrapping up a £15m deal for the marksman after they made contact with the Lisbon outfit.

However, Portuguese TV station SIC Noticias says Sporting have yet to hold negotiations with any club, and are unlikely to accept any fee below the player's £23m buy-out clause.

The Gunners are currently weighing up a bid for the talented hitman with Spurs also likely to make an approach in the coming days.

Slimani netted 27 league goals for Sporting as they came runners-up to Benfica in the recently concluded season.