It has certainly already been a massive transfer window for Arsenal, with the big money signings of Viktor Gyökeres, Martín Zubimendi and Noni Madueke addressing some problem areas. Kepa Arrizabalaga, Cristhian Mosquera and Christian Nørgaard have also arrived as affordable backups to fill out the squad.
If the Gunners are done here, it’s been a successful window, and fans should feel like Arsenal have a better chance at competing for trophies this coming season than they did in the last campaign.
But Arsenal have been linked with a slew of other forwards to offer some help to the slightly overworked and eternally divisive Gabriel Martinelli. If all of Leandro Trossard, Gabriel Jesus and Reiss Nelson exit, as has been rumoured, Arsenal will definitely need at least one more incoming.
Eberechi Eze has been the most regularly linked player, with his £67.5m price tag pretty clearly a significant hang-up for the Gunners. The Guardian says that initial talks have been held between the clubs, but Sky Sports are reporting that the two teams are not in active talks about the transfer.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid seem increasingly concerned that they could be left bag holding on a depreciating asset if no one buys Rodrygo this summer and he spends the year glued to the bench.
The Mirror say his asking price is now about £78m, but we’ve heard nothing about the player agreeing contract terms with anyone, which is usually a prerequisite for a transfer these days.
If I were running Arsenal, I’d be much more interested in Rodrygo at £78m than Eze at £67.5m, but a player coming from Real Madrid is going to demand a much bigger wage packet than one coming from Crystal Palace.
The Transfer FlowWe’ve talked about Rodrygo and a potential Premier League move both here and on the podcast before: His dribbling makes him a major ceiling-raiser, and he’d instantly make any team better. He’s worth a big fee and wage to Arsenal, much more so than Eze.
But after spending nearly £200m, the Gunners clearly need to sell a few pieces before they buy another. I wouldn’t be surprised if things remain quiet with regard to a potential incoming attacker for Arsenal, and heat up again at the end of the window after they’ve made a few sales.