Ivan Toney
Brentford value Ivan Toney at £100m and fully intend to keep him at least until the end of the season. The England international (Ivan Toney) is on the radar of a number of top clubs across Europe and the Premier League, including Chelsea, while Arsenal are also reported to be keen.
He finishes his eight-month ban for betting offences on January 16 – in the middle of the next transfer window – and this has intensified speculation that he could leave for a bigger club.
But Sky Sports News understands it would take a monumental offer during those final 16 days of the window for Brentford to sell, and reports of a £50m-£60m fee have been met with derision in the club’s boardroom.
Manager Thomas Frank stated in the summer he believed Ivan Toney to be worth £100m, and Brentford would have a sound argument for charging that figure, especially if Chelsea come calling.
Frank said: “£100m plus?… What would you pay for a striker that guarantees you 20-plus goals? And this is 20 goals for a mid-table club. What can he do in a bigger club?”
It would be hard to justify anything less for a proven Premier League goalscorer, who was third in the charts with 20 last term, after Chelsea were willing to part with more than £100m each for two midfielders in Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo.
Harry Kane, who scored 10 more than Toney, left Tottenham for Bayern Munich for more than £100m with just a year left on his contract, while Toney will still have 18 months left in January and is three years younger than Kane at 27.
Ivan Toney is also fully expected to be in the running for an England call-up to Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2024 squad, while there is not an abundance of English strikers available for sale, with Ollie Watkins’ new four-year contract effectively taking him off the market.
Arsenal suffering from exact same Havertz problem Chelsea had.
Then there is Toney’s value to Brentford and their season, and the need for his return with strikers Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbuemo set to leave for the Africa Cup of Nations in January.
Their temporary departures would leave Toney and Neal Maupay as the only recognised strikers, with Kevin Schade out with a long-term injury.
