Arsenal could sign their "answer to Haaland" after Berta holds in-person talks

Once all is said and done, who wins the Premier League title between Arsenal and Manchester City could be determined by goal difference.

In short, Erling Haaland could be the man who gets Pep Guardiola’s team over the line. That’s hardly a surprise; he’s one of the best centre-forwards in the land.

As for Viktor Gyokeres, he continues to struggle at the top of Mikel Arteta‘s attack. Yes, he may be the Gunners’ top scorer with 18 strikes this term but his overall play has left a lot to be desired.

Subsequently, it would not be a total surprise to see Andrea Berta have a second attempt at signing a new striker when the summer transfer window opens. Julian Alvarez is one of the prime candidates.

Arsenal could sign big-money Julian Alvarez alternative

The name on everyone’s lips at the Emirates Stadium right now is Alvarez.

Arsenal have a long-term interest in the former City attacker with reports in recent weeks even suggesting that the Argentine has an offer on the table from the Gunners.

That said, Barcelona and PSG are also reportedly in the race to secure his signature in a deal that could cost north of £100m.

Besides that, there are not a huge number of options this summer in the striker market but Victor Osimhen could be one.

Arsenal have been linked with a move for the player in the past and a deal could genuinely happen this summer if everything fell into place.

As it happens, Berta may well be cooking up something special behind the scenes. Indeed, the club’s transfer chief was snapped with Galatasaray president Dursun Ozbek over the weekend by journalist Serkan Korkmaz.

While the topic of the conversation was unclear, it is not uncommon for clubs to discuss the availability of certain players whenever they meet. In fact, Korkmaz later confirmed that Arsenal’s ‘target’ is Osimhen.

The Mirror have shared further details of the trip, suggesting that Berta and newly-appointed recruitment chief Maurizio Micheli attended Galatasaray vs Fenerbahce on Sunday. They were allegedly invited by agent George Gardi, who was at the heart of Osimhen’s £65m move from Napoli last summer.

Why Osimhen could be Arsenal’s answer to Haaland

Arsenal’s big problem this season has been their inability to create chances, rather than score them.

Indeed, when Gyokeres gets in front of the goal, he usually takes the opportunity. He has the seventh-best conversion rate in the Premier League. For context, that’s even better than the aforementioned Haaland.

Best conversion rates: Premier League strikers
Player	Conversion rate – 2025/26
1) Eli Kroupi Jr	26.3%
2) Danny Welbeck	26.5%
3) Brian Brobbey	22.2%
4) Joao Pedro	21.2%
5) Beto	21.2%
6) Igor Thiago	20.6%
7) Viktor Gyokeres	20%
8) Nick Woltemade	20%
9) Erling Haaland	18.8%
10) Callum Wilson	18.2%

Yet, we all know just how good the Norwegian is. City’s main man has found the net on 35 occasions this term. That’s 17 more than Gyokeres.

The fact of the matter is that if Guardiola does prevail over Arteta, the difference is likely have been their centre-forward. Irrespective of how many chances they generate for Gyokeres, he is finding it increasingly difficult to impact games.

This season, 40% of his touches have been unsuccessful. By way of comparison, only 26% of Haaland’s touches are unsuccessful. He keeps hold of the ball more efficiently and he’s technically much better.

So, how about Osimhen? Well, it feels like the Nigerian has been flirting with a move to the Premier League for a while and if he did finally come to England, Arsenal could land their “answer to Haaland” in the words of Gunners reporter and analyst Harvey Diamond.

Why? Well, he’s the sort of player to grab the game by the scruff of the neck and win it for you on his own, much like Haaland.

This season, while he may be playing in Turkey, Osimhen has bagged 20 goals in 31 matches. Seven of those strikes have come in ten games, so he’s more than proven he can do it at the top level too.

A ruthless centre-forward, he’s far more involved than Gyokeres and is a monster of a striker, someone who will bulldoze their way through defences and more often than not, find the back of the net.

Osimhen vs Gyokeres in 2025/26 (league only)
Stat (* = per game)	Osimhen	Gyokeres
Goals *	0.7	0.4
Shots on target *	1.9	0.6
Assists *	0.2	0
Big chances created	5	3
Successful dribbles *	0.3	0.2
Ground duels won *	2	1.2
Aerial duels won *	2.1	0.8

Not just more well-rounded attributes-wise, the fact is that Osimhen has been doing this at a high level for a while now. It was the Nigerian sensation who finally got Napoli over the line when they won their first Serie A title in 33 years back in 2022/23.

That season, the striker scored 26 times, finishing as the league’s top scorer.

This is precisely the type of striker Arsenal need. He is a proven bagsman in a top-five European league and if Berta can get a deal over the line, then he could just be the difference between finishing first and second in the years to come.