According to Greek outlet Gazzetta, PAOK are close to granting former Arsenal ace Chuba Akpom a return to England with a sale to Middlesbrough very close.
Gazzetta report that an agreement was actually already struck before Akpom played in what appears to have been his last outing for PAOK last night in the 2-1 upset win against Benfica.
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It’s added that Championship side Middlesbrough will pay a €3m fee to land the 24-year-old, with PAOK to retain a sell-on clause as part of the deal.
Gazzetta reiterate that the forward’s desire is to return to England, with the Greek outfit clearly not willing to stand in ace’s way.
This relates to Arsenal as the Gunners hold a controversial sell-on clause for Akpom, with the side able to bank 40% from a sale to British sides, compared to 30% if Akpom moved to a foreign club.
The Associated Press added last year that the north London outfit were actually fined €42,300 by FIFA for the inclusion of such a clause in the youngster’s transfer.
Of course with PAOK having to pay back a larger percentage if they sold to a British club – like the potential deal with Middlesbrough – Arsenal’s clause was deemed to have been in violation of rules regarding the influence of other clubs’ transfers, they also didn’t declare this detail in the Transfer Matching System, a secretive move which certainly didn’t bode well.
Despite that, when FIFA’s decision was revealed last summer there was no mention that the clause would be voided, so Arsenal could still be in line for a healthy windfall.
Akpom ended his PAOK career on a positive note as he bagged the assist for the Greek outfit’s opener against Benfica last night.
Akpom had six loan spells away from the Gunners before leaving, the former England youth international has since scored 19 times and chipped in with nine assists in 79 appearances for PAOK.