Arsenal now look to have won the race for one of Andrea Berta’s key striker targets.
Last season, Mikel Arteta was bereft of a regular goalscorer at Arsenal, and that’s perhaps why the Gunners came up short once again in the race for the Premier League title.
But with new sporting director Berta at the helm, Arsenal are expected to spend big on a number nine in the coming months.
As a result of their search, Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres and RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko have emerged as Arsenal’s main two candidates to come in.
In an ideal world, Arsenal would simply spend big on Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak.
But Newcastle are not prepared to sell and Arsenal must have already recognised that they can’t waste time on a lengthy pursuit.
Viktor Gyokeres has told close friends that he expects to play for Arsenal
That being said, talkSPORT journalist Alex Crook has now shared a significant update in terms of Arsenal signing Gyokeres this summer.
Arsenal have held talks with Gyokeres over recent weeks and Crook is now reporting that the Sweden international has begun to tell those close to him that he expects to head to the Emirates.
Viktor Gyokeres celebrating his goal vs Benfica
Photo by Pedro Loureiro/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images
READ MORE: Ethan Nwaneri reveals who he genuinely thinks is the best academy player at Arsenal right now
No agreement between the clubs is in place just yet, but it would seem that Gyokeres is anticipating playing in red next season.
Sharing his update, Crook said: “I had a message 24 hours or so ago suggesting that Viktor Gyokeres has told friends and family he expects to join Arsenal.
“We know that Manchester United are interested in signing him as well, obviously there is that pre-existing relationship with Ruben Amorim.
“But Arsenal can offer Champions League football, maybe can offer a tilt at the title next season.
“But Sporting are going to play hardball, there’s been a fallout between Gyokeres and the club because his agent has suggested that they had a gentleman’s agreement he could leave for £60m, I think they’re looking for nearer £80m.
“Arsenal are juggling both him and Benjamin Sesko, they’ve opened talks with Leipzig as well but at the moment, I would say Gyokeres looks the more likely.”
How Viktor Gyokeres would rank vs Arsenal’s highest earners
According to a recent report by Caught Offside, Arsenal would be willing to pay Gyokeres an annual salary of around £9-10m on a contract until 2030.
That roughly equates to around £192k-a-week if Gyokeres did end up signing for Arsenal, as he seemingly expects to do.
In terms of where that would place Gyokeres in Arsenal’s wage bill, the Sweden international would come in slightly ahead of William Saliba, but not quite on par with Bukayo Saka.
Wage
Kai Havertz £280k-a-week
Gabriel Jesus £265k-a-week
Martin Odegaard £240k-a-week
Delcan Rice £240k-a-week
Thomas Partey £200k-a-week
Bukayo Saka £195k-a-week
Viktor Gyokeres* £192k-a-week
William Saliba £190k-a-week
Arsenal’s highest earners (via Capology).
And if a potential £80m fee didn’t already make it obvious, Arsenal would be expecting Gyokeres to make a big impact immediately on that kind of money.
In comparison to Sesko, Gyokeres is the ‘win now’ striker, a 27-year-old who scored 54 goals across all competitions last season for Sporting.
And whilst Arsenal love Sesko’s ability and potential, Gyokeres might be the right player to help the Gunners lift silverware immediately.