Arsenal final day tickets going for as much as Sh8.7 million

Tickets for Arsenal's final day clash with Wolverhampton Wanderers are selling for as much as Sh8.7 million (£53,000) online.

Mikel Arteta's side lead Manchester City by eight points with just 10 games of the season remaining, with feeling growing at the Emirates that this is the year they end their 19-year Premier League title drought.

With tickets for the final game of the season going on sale to some club members on Tuesday, they were immediately snapped up in seconds.

However, owing to the club's imperious performances on the pitch this campaign, tickets have been increasingly hard to come by for many supporters - with fears that bots are being used by touts to secure the much-desired tickets.

Almost immediately following Arsenal's release of tickets to members for the Wolves clash heavily-inflated match tickets started appearing online on ticket touting websites.

Some individuals on social media reported seeing some going for as much as Sh4 million (£25,000), while others trumped that by posting a screenshot of tickets going for more than double that, at Sh8.7 million (£53,000).

The most expensive ticket for Wolves, a 'Category B' fixture on the club's A-C scale, in the centre of the upper tier bought through Arsenal would set an adult back Sh12,300 (£75.50).

A centre lower tier ticket for the clash, which is being sold for Sh8.7 million £53,000 online, should be setting a supporter back just Sh6,800 (£41.50), meaning a fan could buy the equivalent of 1,292 face value priced tickets for the price of the touted one.

Arsenal have approximately 42,000 season ticket holders for a ground that holds just over 60,000, meaning there should be a sizeable sum up for grabs for every home game.

However, supporters have consistently reported this season that that has not been the case. Red members, the lowest rung of membership, have increasingly found it 'impossible', in some cases, to secure tickets to see the likes of Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli in the flesh.

Acknowledging the problems experienced by many in regards to attending games at the Emirates this season, Arsenal said in a statement on ticketing policy for next season that they were continuing to clamp down on 'ticket touting to protect honest match-going supporters'.

'We will also be ramping up our ongoing work and investment to clamp down on ticket touting to protect honest match-going supporters,' they said last month.

'We recognise the demand for tickets is at unprecedented levels and we have been working to combat the activities by bots and touts.

'This has resulted in 100,000 suspected bots being blocked from the ticketing site in recent weeks. A significant number of season ticket and membership accounts have also been banned for suspicious touting activity.'

They added in their statement that they are striving to ensure more tickets are made available to non-season ticket holders.

'The move follows ongoing feedback from season ticket holders who want more flexibility around attending matches and to support our desire to make more tickets available to our growing membership base.'

Having experienced years of tepid, apathetic and, often, toxic atmospheres at their home ground, Arteta has galvanised the supporter base behind his young team, with the Emirates now considered among the best grounds for atmosphere in the league.

The club made an effort following his appointment in 2019 to ensure more young people were coming through the turnstiles, which has been reflected in the increase in noise at home matches this season and last.

Arsenal face Leeds at home on Saturday looking to keep City at an arms length as the games and weeks whittle down.