Arsenal are ‘very close’ to signing Genk attacking midfielder Konstantinos Karetsas in a €45 million (£37.8m) deal, according to reports in Greece.
The 17-year-old has emerged as one of the brightest young talents in Europe after making his senior debut for Genk a year ago.
This season, Karetsas has quickly established himself in Genk’s first-team squad, scoring three goals and registering four assists in 39 appearances.
The midfielder also won the Belgium Pro League Goal of the Season for his long-range strike against Gent.
Karetsas was born in Belgium to Greek parents and after representing Belgium at youth level, the midfielder switched associations to Greece to make his senior debut for Greece in March.
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He then scored in a 3-0 win against Scotland in his second appearance for the national side to become the youngest scorer in Greece’s history at the age of 17 years, four months and four days.
Karetsas has been linked with several clubs across Europe including Bayern Munich, Newcastle United, Manchester City, Liverpool and Juventus.
But according to Greece’s news agency AMNA, Arsenal are now closing in on a deal to sign the midfielder.
The report claims that Arsenal are now ‘very close’ to reaching an agreement with Genk over a deal worth €45m (£37.8m).
The report adds that Arsenal’s plan is to keep Karetsas on loan at Genk for another season for his development before bringing him into Mikel Arteta’s squad next summer.
Speaking earlier this season, Genk head coach, Thorsten Fink, was keen to keep Karetsas grounded after his superb strike against Gent.
‘He scored a beautiful goal indeed,’ Fink said.
‘That is his quality, he only needs one situation to score. But there is still a lot to improve. I hope you see that too.’
In November, Karetsas extended his contract with Genk which runs until 2027.
‘Genk is my home. I feel a lot of trust from the club,’ Karetsas said.
‘This is the best environment for me to keep growing, close to my family. I want to win trophies with KRC Genk and compete in Europe.’
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