Premier League trio Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United are reportedly all preparing to lock horns for the signature of Red Bull Salzburg attacker Oscar Gloukh.
The 19-year-old came through the Maccabi Tel Aviv academy system before joining the Austrian champions for €7m (£6m) in January, and he already has one goal and three assists to show from eight appearances this season.
Following a slow start to the campaign, Gloukh has since come up with one goal and two assists in his last four Austrian Bundesliga appearances, primarily occupying the number 10 role.
Gloukh can also feature as a deeper-lying midfielder, though, and he has already come up with three goals in eight games for the senior Israel team, prior to which he burst onto the scene at youth level.
During last year's Under-19 European Championships, Gloukh scored three goals and set up two more as Israel reached the final, but their dreams of glory were dashed in a 3-1 loss to England, in which the teenager scored his side's only goal.
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Despite missing out on a winners' medal, Gloukh was included in the UEFA Team of the Tournament, while his strike against England in the final was also named the Goal of the Tournament.
The 2004-born starlet remains under contract with Salzburg for another four years, but according to The Sun, a plethora of leading Premier League clubs sent scouts to watch him in action during the international break.
All of Man United, Liverpool and Arsenal reportedly had representatives in attendance to cast an eye over Gloukh, who scored for his nation in a 1-1 Euro 2024 qualifying draw with Ukraine earlier this month.
It is unclear if any member of the trio plan to formalise their interest in the teenager, though, and Salzburg would be after a substantial profit on the £6m they paid for him over the winter.
Before touching down in Austria, Gloukh was thought to be on the radar of all of Borussia Dortmund, Ajax and Barcelona, and he recently confirmed that the latter were in talks to sign him.
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However, the Israel international revealed that the Blaugrana had waited too long to make their move, and he believes that moving to Salzburg over Camp Nou was the right choice at this stage in his career.
"I was very excited that (Barcelona) wanted me, but they were late for the bidding and came back when we had already closed the Salzburg deal," the publication quotes Gloukh as saying.
"In the end, I think we made the right decision to go to Salzburg and not to Barcelona. It makes more sense for my development as a player."
Gloukh will be expected to start for Salzburg when they open their Champions League campaign away to Benfica on Wednesday night, and the Austrian champions will also take on Real Sociedad and last year's runners-up Inter Milan in Group D.
Ben Knapton
