Arsenal’s pursuit of Leicester City teenage forward Jeremy Monga appears to be over after Manchester City entered the race for his signature.

The Gunners had been pushing hard to secure the 16-year-old, who has already featured in both the Premier League and the Championship during his short career.

A fee of between £10million and £15million had been discussed between Arsenal and Leicester City as the north London club tried to get a deal done.

There was also consideration given to whether a spell in League One might prove more beneficial to Monga’s development than another year in academy football.

However, that prospect has fallen away after BBC Sport reported that City have entered the running for his signature in recent days.

The Athletic has claimed that Arsenal have pulled out of contention entirely, with the asking price deemed too steep by the Gunners’ hierarchy.

Monga made his Premier League debut during the 2024/25 season as a 15-year-old for Leicester, making seven league appearances between April and the end of that campaign.

He was just 15 years, eight months and 28 days old when he came off the bench in a 3-0 defeat against Newcastle United on April 7, 2025.

That appearance made him the second-youngest player to feature in a Premier League match, a record he has since slipped to third following Arsenal’s Max Dowman making his debut.

The Foxes successfully fended off interest from rival clubs last summer despite suffering relegation to the Championship, with Monga signing an academy scholarship upon turning 16.

That agreement is set to become a professional contract this summer, on his 17th birthday on July 10, with a tribunal remaining a possibility to determine whether a fair price is paid.

Monga made 30 appearances across all competitions during the 2025/26 season and became the Championship’s youngest-ever goalscorer when he found the net against Preston North End in August.

He has also been representing England’s Under-18 side on international duty, netting the winning goal in the 2-1 victory over Greece Under-19s and scoring in a 6-1 thrashing of Cyprus.

Arsenal have already secured a deal to sign Victor Ozhianvuna, who will join the club in next season’s January transfer window as they look to strengthen their pool of emerging talent.

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