Arsenal are in pole position to complete the signing of exciting Nigerian youngster Victor Osimhen in the January transfer window.

Osimhen caught the eye of several big clubs across Europe after starring for Nigeria in the U-17 World Cup. The striker scored 10 goals in seven matches in the tournament, leading to the likes Tottenham, Arsenal and Wolfsburg, among others, showing an interest.

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Spurs looked favourites to land the 16-year-old, but now it looks like being a straight battle between Arsenal and Wolfsburg.

"We had many offers for Victor, but narrowed it to Wolfsburg and Arsenal," Gaffar Liameed told The Sun.

Osimhen has already had a tour of Wolfsburg as the Bundesliga club look to seal the striker's signature, but according to the report, the teenager prefers a move to Arsenal.

Meanwhile, Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has backed Arsene Wenger to sign a defensive midfielder in the January transfer window. Arsenal are short of options in that position, after Francis Coquelin suffered a long-term injury.

With the Frenchman not expected back until February, Henry believes Wenger needs to buy a specialist for that position in January, because Mathieu Flamini alone will not be able to handle the burden, even if Calum Chambers is an option for the manager.

"It's a good job Mathieu Flamini didn't leave last summer, as looked likely," Henry wrote in his column for The Sun. "They would have a real problem in central midfield now without him.

"I would expect Arsene Wenger to buy a specialist in that position in January. Their injured stars will all come back into contention eventually.

But Arsenal can't rely on them — they have to plan for the rest of the season without [Santi] Cazorla, Coquelin, [Jack] Wilshere and [Danny] Welbeck."

Arsenal have been linked with Ruben Neves, William Carvalho, Victor Wanyama, Lars Bender and Granit Xhaka, but the tricky bit will be to convince the clubs to sell their players during midseason.