Edin Dzeko: Arsenal Rival Liverpool & United for the £13M ‘Bosnian Marco Van Basten’
Interest is building in Wolfsburg striker Edin Dzeko with numerous Premier League clubs reported to be monitoring his progress though Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United have emerged as front-runners. The 23-year-old has enjoyed a superb season after scoring 19 goals in 28 league appearances (25 starts) as his club currently tops the Bundesliga, three points above Bayern with 4 games to go. His impressive displays have brought interest from the likes of Tottenham, Everton, Blackburn, Portsmouth and Sunderland as well as Champions League regulars Chelsea.
The Bosnian striker is currently the joint 2nd top scorer in Germany, four goals behind leading marksman and team-mate Grafite. However, Grafite’s tally includes 8 penalties whilst Dzeko’s 19-goal tally doesn’t include any from the spot. The Bosnian is also 7 years younger than his strike partner plus more creative and is tipped to move to one of the European giants this summer. He has a reputation as the ‘Bosnian Van Basten’ due to his similar goal-scoring prowess, height and ability to score all sorts of goals.
Dzeko has all the attributes needed to be a big hit in the Premier League as not only is he tall (6 ft 3), he is also quick, can dribble and is two-footed. Not only has the Bosnian proved himself in the Bundesliga but also at international level where he boasts a superb record of 9 goals in 15 appearances for his country. He is arguably the hottest international forward in the world right now after scoring 8 of his goals in his last 6 appearances. This includes 3 goals in two matches against Belgium this month. Dzeko also scored on his international debut against Turkey in June 2007 taking the step up in class in his stride.
The 23-year-old began his playing career in his homeland with Zeljeznicar as a midfielder before reverting to a striker and moving to Czech side FC Teplice where he scored 16 goals in 43 league appearances. Dzeko finished top scorer in 2006/07 prior to a €4million move to Wolfsburg in the summer of 2007.
He was voted best striker in the first half of the 2007/08 Bundesliga season by Sportal.de ending the campaign with 8 goals in 28 league appearances (17 starts). However, this season Dzeko has been nothing short of a revelation which has brought scouts flooding to the Volkswagen Arena to watch him play. He is in a rich vein of form after netting 16 goals in his last 13 domestic appearances including four braces and a hat-trick against Hoffenheim at the weekend.
Dzeko’s record in the Bundesliga is an impressive 27 goals in 56 league appearances (42 starts). Therefore, it’s no surprise that his lit of admirers is growing week on week. Manchester United are unlikely to sign Carlos Tevez permanently and with Dimitar Berbatov not overly impressive in his debut season, Dzeko would be an excellent acquisition.
Rafa Benitez is also in the hunt for a new striker with Ryan Babel likely to depart leaving Fernando Torres as the only recognised Striker alongside the inexperienced David Ngog. The tall Bosnian hitman can play a similar role to Torres but can also play deeper as he is a creative ball player rather than just a target man.
Arsene Wenger is reported to be losing patience with his main striker Emmanuel Adebayor after a poor season and the talented Dzeko would certainly fit into the Gunners attacking style.
Interest is building in Wolfsburg striker Edin Dzeko with numerous Premier League clubs reported to be monitoring his progress though Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United have emerged as front-runners. The 23-year-old has enjoyed a superb season after scoring 19 goals in 28 league appearances (25 starts) as his club currently tops the Bundesliga, three points above Bayern with 4 games to go. His impressive displays have brought interest from the likes of Tottenham, Everton, Blackburn, Portsmouth and Sunderland as well as Champions League regulars Chelsea.
The Bosnian striker is currently the joint 2nd top scorer in Germany, four goals behind leading marksman and team-mate Grafite. However, Grafite’s tally includes 8 penalties whilst Dzeko’s 19-goal tally doesn’t include any from the spot. The Bosnian is also 7 years younger than his strike partner plus more creative and is tipped to move to one of the European giants this summer. He has a reputation as the ‘Bosnian Van Basten’ due to his similar goal-scoring prowess, height and ability to score all sorts of goals.
Dzeko has all the attributes needed to be a big hit in the Premier League as not only is he tall (6 ft 3), he is also quick, can dribble and is two-footed. Not only has the Bosnian proved himself in the Bundesliga but also at international level where he boasts a superb record of 9 goals in 15 appearances for his country. He is arguably the hottest international forward in the world right now after scoring 8 of his goals in his last 6 appearances. This includes 3 goals in two matches against Belgium this month. Dzeko also scored on his international debut against Turkey in June 2007 taking the step up in class in his stride.
The 23-year-old began his playing career in his homeland with Zeljeznicar as a midfielder before reverting to a striker and moving to Czech side FC Teplice where he scored 16 goals in 43 league appearances. Dzeko finished top scorer in 2006/07 prior to a €4million move to Wolfsburg in the summer of 2007.
He was voted best striker in the first half of the 2007/08 Bundesliga season by Sportal.de ending the campaign with 8 goals in 28 league appearances (17 starts). However, this season Dzeko has been nothing short of a revelation which has brought scouts flooding to the Volkswagen Arena to watch him play. He is in a rich vein of form after netting 16 goals in his last 13 domestic appearances including four braces and a hat-trick against Hoffenheim at the weekend.
Dzeko’s record in the Bundesliga is an impressive 27 goals in 56 league appearances (42 starts). Therefore, it’s no surprise that his lit of admirers is growing week on week. Manchester United are unlikely to sign Carlos Tevez permanently and with Dimitar Berbatov not overly impressive in his debut season, Dzeko would be an excellent acquisition.
Rafa Benitez is also in the hunt for a new striker with Ryan Babel likely to depart leaving Fernando Torres as the only recognised Striker alongside the inexperienced David Ngog. The tall Bosnian hitman can play a similar role to Torres but can also play deeper as he is a creative ball player rather than just a target man.
Arsene Wenger is reported to be losing patience with his main striker Emmanuel Adebayor after a poor season and the talented Dzeko would certainly fit into the Gunners attacking style.
