Wilfried Zaha is keen on a move to Arsenal but Crystal Palace's lofty valuation will likely prove problematic, according to David Ornstein of BBC Sport.
Zaha intends to leave Palace, for whom he re-signed in 2015, this summer and The Emirates is thought to be his preferred destination.
However Zaha, currently on African Cup of Nations duty with the Ivory Coast, still has three years remaining on his contract and is regarded as Palace's most important player, resulting in a price tag of around £80m.
Qualification for the Champions League would have given Arsenal the means to land Zaha, but their failure to do so has limited their budget to just £45m.
The majority of that initial figure will likely be spent on Celtic left-back Kieran Tierney and St Etienne's young centre-half William Saliba.
Arsenal may, therefore, be forced to offload a top player if they are to meet Palace's asking price.
A clear standout
Zaha has been central to Palace's successful Premier League survival bids and is widely considered one of the best players outside the top six.
He has 32 goals in 177 Premier League appearances, an impressive tally when one considers the Eagles' consistent struggles. Moreover, his creativity is a valuable asset, with 34 assists to his name in the top division.
Last season, Zaha was directly involved in 20 goals as Palace finished 12th. One of his strikes came in a 3-2 win at The Emirates in April which dented Arsenal's top-four ambitions.
The winger has also attracted interest from the Gunners' North London rivals Spurs and from Borussia Dortmund in Germany.
Who might Arsenal sell?
Ornstein suggests the club could consider putting last season's top-scorer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang up for sale, knowing his departure would fund a Zaha swoop.
He does, though, note their deep unease with the prospect of parting with the 31-goal forward.
It is thought that they will not sanction the sale of last summer's arrival Lucas Torreira, amid reports of interest from AC Milan.
They may decide instead to amass the necessary sum through the quantity, rather than quality, of departures.