Last summer, Arsenal and Liverpool were celebrated as the winners of the transfer window. However, when being awarded that honour, it doesn’t often end well.
Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz have not lived up to their weighty £100m plus transfer fees and while the Gunners did not quite spend that much on one player, they also have just cause to be frustrated with a few of their own acquisitions.
Viktor Gyokeres is the club’s top scorer with 18 this season but is regularly lambasted for his inability to hold onto possession. On the flanks, £52m signing Noni Madueke has only netted seven times. It was a strange move at the time and it looks even more puzzling the deeper he gets into his Arsenal journey.
If the Gunners end up winning the Premier League, few will have very many complaints about their investment. If they don’t, however, Andrea Berta will be questioned. It will only make this summer window even more important.
What the future holds for Arsenal this summer
If Arsenal do spend big this year then it’s likely it’ll come at the expense of several first-team squad members with sales reportedly needing to be made.
Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri represent an opportunity to seal pure profit on two players but there would be riots outside of the Emirates if they departed.
As a result, it’s likely that the Gunners would listen to offers for the likes of Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli if they came in. After all, it’s the forward line that needs bolstering most.
On the left flank, Anthony Gordon and Kvicha Kvaratskhelia have been linked as potential replacements.
Will Berta strengthen up front? Well, it’s safe to say that none of their strikers have truly staked a claim this season, even if Gyokeres is up to 18 goals in all competitions.
Perhaps the arrival of Julian Alvarez would help? Arsenal have been linked with the Argentine for some time, but at the moment it feels unlikely he’ll return to England anytime soon.
The former Manchester City forward is attracting the interest of Barcelona, according to reporter Ben Jacobs, who noted that the Atletico Madrid star is Barca’s ‘dream target’ this summer.
That said, they do face competition from Mikel Arteta‘s side who have already made ‘formative’ enquiries this year. He will come at a premium, however.
Atleti are unwilling to let him leave for a fee lower than £104m, £1m lower than club-record signing Declan Rice. Speaking of which, Alvarez’s impact could be rather similar if he moved to the Emirates.
Why Alvarez would be Arsenal’s best signing since Rice
In the summer of 2023, Arsenal needed to make a statement to the Premier League. Courting Rice alongside Manchester City, as soon as the Citizens entered the race it looked as though they would win it.
Yet, Arsenal pushed hard, ever so hard, to get a deal for Rice over the line and since he became a Gooner, he has totally transformed the team.
He’s a leader, a warrior, a defensive machine and he’s become pretty handy in the final third now. You name it and Rice can do it.
A true clutch player, it was the Englishman who delivered those two remarkable free-kicks this time last year against Real Madrid in the Champions League. It is Rice who has helped pioneer their set-piece success in general.
|
Declan Rice by season |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Season |
Games |
Goals |
Assists |
|
2020/21 |
35 |
2 |
1 |
|
2021/22 |
50 |
5 |
4 |
|
2022/23 |
50 |
5 |
4 |
|
2023/24 |
51 |
7 |
9 |
|
2024/25 |
52 |
9 |
10 |
|
2025/26 |
49 |
5 |
11 |
Alongside Bukayo Saka, his delivery from a corner and a dead ball in general is second to very few. Without him, who knows where Arsenal would be? He has been that good.
Well, given the state of Arsenal’s forward line, Alvarez could be similarly transformative. Last summer, the Gunners added Gyokeres to their ranks in the hope of finally getting over the line in their bid for domestic superiority.
It was widely thought that a new striker would be just the ticket as far as Arteta is concerned, but it’s not been quite as simple as that.
He has scored just once across his last five matches and notably lacks the technical security to keep the ball and bring others into play. This season, 40% of the Swede’s touches have been unsuccessful. To put that into context, only 26% of Erling Haaland’s touches are unsuccessful.
|
Gyokeres touch success vs PL strikers |
|
|---|---|
|
Player |
Failure rate |
|
Viktor Gyokeres |
40% |
|
Erling Haaland |
26% |
|
Igor Thiago |
29% |
|
Joao Pedro |
27% |
He’s simply not involved enough, but that could all change with the arrival of Alvarez. Not just a goalscorer, he’s a brilliant creator and simply loves linking up with his teammates.
At Atletico, the 26-year-old has netted 19 times in 2025/26, also supplying nine assists. Last term, the Argentine assisted eight and fired home as many as 29 goals in all competitions.
A “monster” in the words of Argentine journalist Pablo Gonzalez, Alvarez is ruthless in front of goal, capable of the spectacular and possesses plenty more technical ability than Gyokeres. This season, Arsenal’s number 14 has only had 25 touches per game. Alvarez is a lot more involved, taking just over 50 per match.
Furthermore, he completes 50% of his take-ons. The Swede has only completed 18% of his in the Premier League. In short, the difference between the two is chalk and cheese.
Arsenal do not necessarily need a new striker this summer but if Alvarez is available, it’s hard to pass up the opportunity. He’s a player who could take Arteta’s side to a brand new level, just as Rice did after his arrival three years ago.
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