Fabrizio Romano: Arsenal hold secret meeting to hijack £428m Barcelona target

Arsenal‘s summer of ruthless business shows no sign of slowing down after the Gunners opened their Premier League title defence in style on Thursday night.

Mikel Arteta’s men thrashed Coventry City 3-0 at the Emirates thanks to goals from Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard. It continued the momentum from their Community Shield win over Manchester City the previous weekend, and the manager was delighted with what he saw.

“There was a lot to like,” Arteta said after full time. “Obviously it was a great result, but the manner we started the game, the domination, clarity, understanding and growth in the game was really impressive.”

Encouragingly for supporters, Arteta had also made it clear ahead of the season’s curtain raiser that the champions aren’t done shopping this summer despite an already busy window.

“There is more that we want to do because every time we have an opportunity to improve the squad and bring more quality and depth to the squad, we need to do that,” the Spaniard said, and sure enough Ezri Konsa has arrived from Aston Villa in a deal worth £55m. The England international can fill in at right-back or centre-back and was one of the standout defenders in the Premier League last season.

But for all the incomings, there remains a nagging sense that Arsenal are still light up front – a view shared by Jamie Carragher, who claimed on Sky Sports’ coverage on Friday night that the Gunners lack a ‘world class’ player up front.

That search for a striker has now led Arsenal to Julian Alvarez, and according to Fabrizio Romano, they’ve taken concrete steps this week to test the water.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Romano revealed Arsenal held a meeting in London with Atletico Madrid to discuss the World Cup winner, despite Barcelona having spent months trying – and failing – to get a deal moving.

Reuters/Vincent Carchietta

“Barcelona for months, trying and trying, waiting and waiting, but still no doors open from Atletico Madrid,” Romano said. “Arsenal, yesterday, contact in London with the director of Atletico Madrid, Arsenal are asking about deal conditions, possibilities, but Atletico are asking for a transfer fee that Arsenal cannot pay at this stage and also the player – so far – never opening the door to English clubs.

The transfer saga has already taken a bitter turn behind the scenes, with Alvarez’s representatives making their frustration with Atletico public. Fernando Hidalgo, the striker’s agent, posted a pointed message on Instagram widely seen as a dig at the club’s hierarchy: “Never ask a liar why he lied. Because to explain it, he would have to lie again.”

The comments followed Atletico’s refusal to sanction a move to Barcelona this summer, with the club insisting no promise was ever made to the player about an exit. According to reports in Spain, Atletico will only sanction a departure if a club meets Alvarez’s release clause in full – a stance that could complicate any Arsenal move just as much as it has Barcelona’s, given it stands at €500m (£428m).

It’s easy to see why clubs are so interested despite the monumental price tag. The Argentine has been one of the most productive forwards in Europe since his move to Atletico, combining relentless work rate with a knack for big moments that made him such a key figure in Argentina’s World Cup triumph. His versatility across the front line – comfortable as an out-and-out striker or dropping deeper to link play – would give Arteta another dimension few current squads can boast.

For now though, the numbers don’t add up, and Alvarez’s reluctance to move to England remains the biggest obstacle. With his agent now publicly clashing with Atletico and the release clause looking like the only route out, Arsenal may have to look elsewhere to solve their centre-forward puzzle – with Victor Osimhen among the other names repeatedly linked with a move to the Emirates.