Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur reportedly both had scouts in attendance to watch Arthur Vermeeren during Royal Antwerp's Champions League win over Barcelona on Wednesday.
The Belgian outfit ended a dismal European campaign on a high with a shock 3-2 victory over the La Liga champions, where Vermeeren opened the scoring with just two minutes played.
A defensive mix-up between goalkeeper Inaki Pena and Oriol Romeu saw the ball fall kindly at the feet of Vermeeren, who rifled home his first Champions League goal to set Antwerp on their way to a memorable triumph.
Vermeeren was bestowed with the man-of-the-match award at the end of the game, having also completed both of his dribble attempts and all three of his long passes in another assured display beyond his years.
The 18-year-old's strike in midweek was his third goal from 62 games for Antwerp, for whom he has also provided seven assists from a midfield position, and he has two goals and five assists under his belt from 28 matches so far this season.
© Reuters
The 2005-born protege was even given the captain's armband for a Champions League defeat to Porto last month, and he has two caps to his name for the Belgium senior team, earning his debut in October and making his first start in a friendly beating of Serbia in November.
Vermeeren's exploits with his boyhood club have inevitably attracted glances from top-tier European clubs, with Antwerp's recent foes Barcelona understood to be one of the teams keeping a close eye on his displays.
Now, 90min claims that both Arsenal and Spurs sent representatives to witness Vermeeren's man-of-the-match performance in midweek, while Borussia Dortmund were also keeping an eye on the teenager.
The two North London rivals have apparently already touched base with Antwerp to make enquiries about Vermeeren, who extended his contract with the Belgian side until 2026 back in February.
However, the duo will face stiff competition for the midfielder's signature, as Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Juventus have also been monitoring Vermeeren's performances over the past few months.
© Reuters
Given the growing interest in his services, Antwerp are not expected to hold on to their highly-rated academy product for much longer, and he could even be tempted away from his homeland as early as January.
A new midfielder should be high on Arsenal's agenda for the January window, as Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny - both of whom are currently out injured - are due to represent Ghana and Egypt respectively at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Jorginho's contract also only runs until the end of the season, and Vermeeren could prove to be a cheaper alternative to Aston Villa's Douglas Luiz, whom the Lions have no intention of letting go next month.
Tottenham are also set to lose Senegal's Pape Sarr and Mali's Yves Bissouma to AFCON call-ups, while Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg is also believed to be on Juventus' shortlist of Paul Pogba replacements.
However, Ange Postecoglou has confirmed that defensive reinforcements will be his side's priority in January following injuries to Micky van de Ven, Eric Dier and Ashley Phillips.
Ben Knapton
