Ademola Lookman - Charlton Athletic v Bolton Wanderers - Sky Bet Football League Championship
Ademola Lookman - Charlton Athletic v Bolton Wanderers - Sky Bet Football League Championship Reuters

Following Jamie Vardy’s meteoric rise in the English Premier League (EPL), many clubs are starting to look at the Championship (English football’s second division) for recruiting players. Arsenal is not any different and is set to bring in Championship wonder kid Ademola Lookman of Charlton Athletic ahead of rivals Manchester City.

The Premier League table toppers is looking to bring in the 18-year-old English forward for £2 million (AU$4.1 million), according to The Sun.

Premier League giants Chelsea and Liverpool have also been linked with the youngster who has scored three goals for Charlton since his debut last November.

Karel Fraeye, interim head coach of Charlton Athletic has stated that Lookman is not leaving The Addicks. “Ademola is on a two-and-a-half year deal already. Ademola has just started first-team football. He’s started very well but he’s got so many steps to take,” Fraeye said.

Lookman has made eight appearances in the English Football League Championship for Charlton Athletic this season. The forward has no assist to his name and has a shot accuracy of 46 percent, according to squawka.com.

Fraeye believes that the striker won’t be leaving the club in January and will stay with Charlton for a long time. Charlton is looking to bring in their former manager Jose Riga as the permanent replacement for Guy Luzon.

Arsenal head coach Arsene Wenger has a reputation of identifying young talents across Europe and developing them into superstars. The Frenchman has been linked with a host of strikers across the continent since last summer.

Wenger has been keen on adding a world-class striker to his line-up over the past few seasons with the likes of Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema and Paris Saint-Germain’s (PSG) Edinson Cavani linked with the club. Recently, Wenger stated that he expects the 2016 January transfer window as the busiest in recent times.

Arsenal is set to sign FC Basel midfielder Mohamed Elneny and is strongly linked with PSG midfielder Adrien Rabiot. With Ademola Lookman on the cards, the winter transfer window looks to be very exciting for Arsenal fans.