LATEST UPDATE ‼️ Managing Arsenal – Viktor Gyokeres transfer completed as Martin Zubimendi signs and six sold

Arsenal transfer news as football.london decides the summer business with huge deals ahead for Mikel Arteta

Viktor Gyokeres is one of Arsenal’s key summer transfer targets

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Arsenal are approaching the biggest summer in recent memory. They have made the step up to being a contender after four years of hard work from former sporting director Edu Gaspar and Mikel Arteta, but now they have to go further.

Moving from nearly there to topping the pile is arguably even harder to do than the total cultural reset Arsenal have carried out. The attention and scale of business goes up a notch.

To become the best you have to, very often, buy the best. That is not how Arsenal have gotten to this point but the appointment of Andrea Berta (previously Atletico Madrid) suggests that they are looking at this as a method.

With Liverpool doing their work aggressively and early, looking set to add Jeremy Frimpong and Florian Wirtz to the new contracts for Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah – not to mention the push for Milos Kerkez – Arsenal will be attempting to catch up with Arne Slot’s men. One month ago and the story might have been different.

Had Liverpool lost Van Dijk and Salah along with Trent Alexander-Arnold, then some would have seen that with their drop off in form as an open door for Arsenal. football.london wrote at the time that Arsenal would be one summer and just three possible signings away from making themselves title favourites.

Liverpool have done plenty since to put themselves firmly back in place. The current season is yet to finish but this is where we now are. Manchester City have a rebuild to continue after changes in January, whilst none of the others look ready for a sustained challenge.

So what do Arsenal do to make Liverpool sweat a bit more? Here, football.london takes the keys to London Colney and delves into the world of fantasy to carry out a summer of deals.

Sign Gyokeres

This one is easy. Arsenal are desperate for a striker and have been for a few years. There is plenty of competition for the No.9s on the market but Arsenal look to have the upper hand when it comes to Gyokeres.

They are after a more established name than Liam Delap or Hugo Ekitike and may well value Gyokeres’ experience over the rawness of Benjamin Sesko. 12 months on from Gyokeres’ £80million price tag, he appears to be on the market for around £60million.

That is a much better deal given there are still questions over how he will adapt to the Premier League and what his playstyle will be like in England. It is understandable why Gyokeres tops the list, though.

He is cheaper and actually available, unlike Alexander Isak. He does not command wages of the Saudi Pro League like Victor Osimhen. He is a rung below totally elite with the possibility of quickly exploding to that level if his goalscoring is transferred.

Whilst the rest of the world battle over other strikers, Arsenal seem to be ahead of the game with Gyokeres. He can compete with and complement Kai Havertz, whilst also being a genuine statement.

Be ruthless with the fringes

Kieran Tierney and Jorginho are going, but Arsenal could do with more following them. Unless Jakub Kiwior is going to continue this streak of form as a third-choice centre-back, it might be worth considering options for him again.

There has been interest in the Polish international previously and Arsenal were open to a quick flip on him. The question is whether he really is good enough for where Arteta and Berta need to be.

Maybe this run of games is all he needed to prove himself. It could also be a good way to raise his price whilst looking elsewhere. Whatever happens, Arsenal need to be emotionless and clinical with their squad.

Gabriel Jesus has not been good enough for 18 months (when fit) so he cannot be part of the long-term plans. Injury will mean he is surely kept around this summer but whether he should form part of Arsenal going forward is another matter.

The same is true of Leandro Trossard. There have been suitors for him before and if Arsenal get the winger they want, it might be time to cash in.

Leandro Trossard during Arsenal’s clash against Ipswich Town (Image: Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

Trossard has played a valuable role for Arsenal since joining in January 2023, but soon they will have to decide whether or not to offer him a new deal. Given the age and demand for more and better, it is players like Trossard who Arsenal cannot afford to hold onto for longer than they are effective.

Is an impact substitute worth the cost? Maybe not. The same goes for Oleksandr Zinchenko. He has been peripheral to Arsenal for so long that surely nothing but a sale comes from the summer.

It may be harsh to move on from players who have helped Arsenal get to this stage but they need to fund the leap ahead of them.

Find depth

It is easier said than done, because Arsenal know that as well as a striker, they need immediate quality in midfield and on the wing, but if there are wholesale departures as well, Arteta will have to get the numbers in to rotate properly. He hasn’t been able to do that (or has chosen not to, out of choice) in the last few years and it has been costly.