New Delhi, Aug 9 (IANS): Arsenal and French team Olympique de Marseille are close to reaching an agreement for English striker Eddie Nketiah with a loan deal consisting of an obligation to buy for 30 million euros demanded by Arsenal. The decision is now up to Marseille.

The two sides have been in negotiation for Nketiah for quite a while and Marseille had previously submitted an offer near 20 million euros which fell short of Arsenal’s value of the striker as reported by The Athletic.

Marseille and Eddie Niketiah’s camp have been in negotiations and are said to have already agreed to a five-year deal which they will sign once the transfer details are sorted by the clubs.

Nketiah’s departure is a part of Arsenal’s ongoing clearance which also saw academy player Emile Smith Rowe leave the club for Fulham.

Arsenal, whose only major signing of the season has been Italian defender Riccardo Calafiori are said to be selling players first before they move for anyone else.

They are reportedly in talks with Spanish midfielder Mikel Merino who is said to be looking for a transfer from Real Sociedad. Alongside Merino, the North London Club has also been in talks with a Portuguese club for striker Viktor Gyokeres but will need to sell players to facilitate the transfer.

With the season all set to begin in a week, Mikel Arteta would be hoping to fasten the transfers and seal his squad ahead of the end of the transfer window.