A Rice repeat: Berta making it his mission to sign £100m star for Arsenal

In the summer of 2023 everything changed for the Gunners. Arsenal had just come close to winning the Premier League title, finishing second to Manchester City.

That has been a familiar theme of the Mikel Arteta regime, even if he has now finally got over the line.

That said, without the business conducted ahead of the 2023/24 window, they may not have secured the title three years later. During that summer, they not just welcomed Declan Rice in a colossal £105m deal, but they also signed David Raya, Jurrien Timber and Kai Havertz.

Since signing, they have been four of the most importnat players for Arteta.

Arsenal went big again last summer but it was different to 2023. That year it was about raising the ceiling, last year it was about raising the floor.

So, what’s the recipe for 2026? Well, after winning the league it is surely about finding ceiling raisers once again.

Arsenal targeting another £100m deal

A little under a year ago, Arsenal signed as many as eight new players in the summer transfer window but it feels unlikely they’ll go to those lengths again during Andrea Berta’s third transfer window at the helm.

This time it’s about cherry picking the best players available to strengthen a title-winning side. The Gunners can afford to be picky and surely will not run into many problems when attempting to convince key targets to move to the Emirates Stadium.

One of their biggest priorities must be to strengthen the attack, despite the arrivals of Noni Madueke, Eberechi Eze and Viktor Gyokeres in 2025.

Julian Alvarez is the one the fans want. Arsenal have reportedly held talks over a move for the Atletico Madrid striker but boasting a valuation north of £100m, it feels unlikely they’ll spend that much on a new centre forward a year on from Gyokeres’ arrival.

Alvarez is not the only mega-money player who could make a move to the Emirates Stadium. Indeed, reports in recent days suggest Morgan Rogers is a key target for Arteta and Co. On Tuesday it was suggested that they have already held talks with the player’s advisors.

Now, according to Football Transfers, it has been revelead that Arsenal have conducted ‘extensive groundwork’ on the player.

Berta is said to be a ‘huge admirer’ of the player and has made it his ‘personal project’ for the summer to bring the Aston Villa star to north London.

The Arsenal transfer chief is already pushing hard to sign the player, although the asking price from Villa will need to come down. They value Rogers at £100m but the Premier League champions want to pay significantly less than that.

Why Rogers could be another Declan Rice for Arsenal

The summer of 2023 changed Arsenal fans’ lives. Rice to the Emirates for a £105m fee? Now we’re talking.

In the process of signing the midfielder, they saw off competition from title rivals Manchester City to secure the player and alongside Gabriel and William Saliba, he was arguably the biggest difference maker compared to Pep Guardiola’s side in 2025/26.

He is one of the best midfielders in the world, one of the best players on the globe and conversations of a Ballon d’Or nomination are already ongoing.

The way in which Rogers could join Arsenal would be a remarkably similar tale. As a boy Rice was released by Chelsea but found fame and stardom elsewhere, going onto captain West Ham United to a European trophy, the Conference League.

In the case of Rogers, he had to move away from Man City as a youngster before heading to Middlesbrough in the Championship and then to Villa, where like Rice, he has tasted silverware on the continental stage, winning the Europa League a week ago.

There are further comparisons to be had here. Like Rice was at the time of moving, Rogers is one of the best English players in the Premier League currently featuring for a side outside of the division’s typical big six sides.

It will surely only be a matter of time before the Villa superstar heads for pastures new. Indeed, in recent years, he has gone from “not just being one of the best young players in the Premier League, but looking like one of the best players in the league,” in the words of Jamie Carragher.

It’s hard to dispute that fact. In 2024/25, the 23-year-old won the PFA Premier League Player of the Year award, scoring 14 goals and supplying a further 16 assists throughout all competitions.

Rogers has perhaps struggled for a similar degree of consistency in 2025/26 but he’s still been elite for the Villans, netting another 14 times and registering 12 assists.

Versatile, the England star can play off the left or as a number 10 behind the striker. He’s got that elite mentality Rice possesses too. Speaking in an interview with BBC Sport earlier this season, the attacker had some words that will no doubt pique Arteta’s interest.

He said: “I like to see myself as a player who can do different things on the pitch when asked. I can be a no.10, I can be a winger, I can be a striker. If you ask me to do it and give me the instructions on how to do it, I have the capability to offer something different to what other people don’t have.”

Rogers continued: “My favourite position depends on the game. It depends where the space is. I want to play in space. Wherever that is on the pitch, I want to play there.”

For Arteta and Berta, that should be music to their ears. They love an adaptable player, someone who’s ready to listen and that’s precisely what the Villa man could give them by joining this summer.