Arsenal not interested in signing Napoli striker Victor Osimhen
Arsenal have made only one outfield signing in the current transfer window, but there could be more activity ahead of the new Premier League season.
A midfielder is one of the top priorities for manager Mikel Arteta and Real Sociedad’s Mikel Merino has been heavily linked with the club over the past week.
A marquee centre-forward could also be signed by the Gunners but Corriere dello Sport (page 18) claim that ‘everything is in the freezer’ regarding Victor Osimhen.
Napoli currently want a transfer fee close to the striker’s €130 million release clause. Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain have no plans of meeting the asking price.
It is added that the Gunners are ‘very active’ on Sporting Lisbon striker Viktor Gyokeres and are also tempted by the availability of Manchester City’s Julian Alvarez.
Arsenal more likely to sign Gyokeres this summer
At the start of the summer, it was widely reported that Arsenal could spend big on a marquee striker.
However, there has been no progress whatsoever. The club spent most of July negotiating for Bologna defender Riccardo Calafiori. The Italian eventually joined before the Liverpool friendly.
Merino has verbally agreed personal terms for a transfer, but Arsenal are yet to make a formal bid. In our view, the club could concentrate on signing the Spain international in the coming days.
A striker could be the next priority. Osimhen’s name has been regularly mentioned, but we don’t see the Gunners spending a club-record fee on an injury-prone centre-forward.
The Nigerian star has missed almost 70 games for club and country with injuries since his move to Naples in 2020. This could discourage the Gunners from making a huge outlay.
Alvarez has emerged as a surprise target over the last few days, but a deal seems improbable as Manchester City would not want to strengthen a direct rival for the title.
Arsenal have been close to beating the Cityzens to the English crown and manager Pep Guardiola would not want to further boost the Gunners’ prospects with Alvarez’s transfer.
Hence, Gyokeres seems the most ideal choice. The Swede was sensational for Sporting last term, scoring 43 goals and providing 15 assists from 53 appearances in all competitions.
He had a minor knee surgery at the end of the campaign, but has returned in fine form and shape.
The 26-year-old scored a hat-trick in his comeback friendly against Farense. He recently bagged two assists in the Portuguese Super Cup where Porto stunned Sporting with a 4-3 comeback win.
Gyokeres has a release clause worth €100m in his contract and Sporting are unlikely to accept anything less. Arsenal could persuade Sporting to accept a long-term payment plan.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com
