A string of leading Championship clubs are vying for the signature of Arsenal midfielder Krystian Bielik.

Derby County, West Bromwich Albion, Middlesbrough and Brentford are among the teams who are interested in signing the 21 year-old, who excelled on loan at Charlton Athletic last season.

Arsenal do not believe Bielik is ready for first-team action this season but are hopeful that the Poland under-21 international will sign a contract extension in north London.

Bielik has two years left on his current deal, though, and Arsenal would rather sell him permanently this summer if he shows no interest in extending his contract.

Arsenal have had a series of problems in recent years with players entering the final year of their contracts. They shattered their wage structure in order to keep Mesut Ozil once the German had reached the last six months of his deal, and this summer they have seen Aaron Ramsey join Juventus for free after his Arsenal contract expired.