Arsenal went out of the Champions League to PSG midweek, failing to take that extra step and get to the final of the competition. The French side won both legs of the tie and despite Mikel Arteta trying to argue otherwise, PSG were the better team and thoroughly deserved to go through.
For Arsenal it’s now a case of what they need to do to take the next step under the Spaniard. They’ve been in tussles to win the Premier League in recent seasons but fallen short there as well. Indeed, the last trophy the club picked up was the FA Cup in 2020.
General consensus is that Arsenal need to secure themselves a top striker.
Viktor Gyökeres has been seen as the likeliest option and those links go back quite some way. The 26-year-old has been a goal machine for Sporting CP.
Last season he hit the back of the net 43 times and contributed 15 assists across 50 matches. This season he’s shown that wasn’t a fluke, with a remarkable 52 goals and 12 assists in 49 matches so far.
That’s 95 goals in two seasons and he’s not stopped yet.
Those are crazy statistics and if anything it’s a shock the tussle for him isn’t more fierce.
Saturday’s edition of Correio da Manhã has big Arsenal claims.
The newspaper may be the most excitable in Portugal, but they state Arsenal have now ‘submitted their first official offer’ to sign Gyökeres. That offer is put at €75m, and it’s reported the Gunners have already agreed everything with the Swedish international.
However, Sporting president Frederico Varandas sees this as a first offer, believing he can get more. Gyökeres could win this season’s European Golden Boot and it’s thought that may help.
Interestingly, it’s also claimed Arsenal are worried that Chelsea could charge in and simply pay something close to the player’s €100m clause.
As ever with Sporting, adding a collection of bonuses, some easy to achieve and some harder like Ballon d’Or, could do the trick.
