Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur have all made contact with Royal Antwerp over the availability of teenage midfielder Arthur Vermeeren.
The 18-year-old made his professional debut for Antwerp in August last year and went on to make 20 league appearances in 2022-23 as the Belgium club won their first top-flight title for 66 years as well as lift the Belgian Cup.
Vermeeren, who predominantly operates as a deep-lying midfielder, is now closing in on 50 first-team appearances for Antwerp and has featured in 15 games across all competitions in the new campaign, scoring once and providing five assists.
The youngster was recently rewarded for his rapid rise on the European stage with a call-up to the Belgium national team this month, and he made his debut as a second-half substitute in 3-2 win against Austria in a Euro 2024 qualifier on Friday.
Vermeeren is also understood to have caught the eye of a number of top European teams including Barcelona, who allegedly had scouts watching the Antwerp midfielder during Champions League games against the Catalan giants and Shakhtar Donetsk.
Indeed, the teenager played the full 90 minutes in Antwerp's 5-0 group-stage defeat against Barcelona in September, but a month later provided two assists in a 3-2 defeat at home to Shakhtar.
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Vermeeren then scored one and provided one assist in his most recent outing for Antwerp in a 4-1 Belgian Pro League win over Eupen before the international break.
As well as Barcelona, Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United have also been credited with an interest in Vermeeren, but there are three more Premier League teams who are also exploring the possibility of luring the youngster to England.
According to 90min, treble winners Man City, Arsenal and Spurs have all made enquiries to Antwerp about the highly sought-after Vermeeren.
The report adds that German duo Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, as well as Italian giants Juventus, are also closely monitoring the midfielder's situation.
It is thought that Antwerp have placed a £15m asking price on Vermeeren, who will see his current contract expire in the summer of 2026.
On Friday, Vermeeren was confirmed as one of 25 players nominated for the 2023 Golden Boy award after the 100-strong list was shortened.
Oliver Thomas
