Arsenal supporters await a marquee striker signing.placeholder image
Arsenal supporters await a marquee striker signing. | Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Arsenal remain in the market for a marquee striker signing but recent links with Benjamin Sesko and Viktor Gyokeres appear to have stalled.
Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta has a busy summer ahead at the Emirates Stadium but not task remains more pressing than adding a talisman to the Gunners squad.
The Gunners lacked the necessary firepower to keep the pressure on eventual title winners Liverpool last season and won’t want to let that happen again next term. Injuries to star men Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus did not help but, even with those two players fit, Mikel Arteta’s side has been lacking a prolific option to lead the line.
There’s been no shortage of transfer links to fill that hole in north London but two prime candidates have emerged in Sporting CP striker Viktor Gyokeres and RB Leipzig man Benjamin Sesko. Since the end of the 2024/25 season, deals have looked to almost be complete with each of those two stars at one point or another, but various setbacks have been reported in recent weeks.
Fabrizio Romano gives Arsenal transfer update
Those will have been blows to Arsenal fans. There are few more exciting talismen than Gyokeres and Sesko on the continent and, truthfully, recruiting either player would be a huge coup for the club. In his latest GiveMeSport Newsletter, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has provided a welcome update, suggesting that either player could still be Emirates bound. He wrote: “Sesko and Gyokeres are both contacts ongoing at the moment. Let’s see what Arsenal decide.”
That latest update will be music to the ears of Arsenal fans, with Romano suggesting that the power remains in Berta’s hands. The former Atletico Madrid chief is known for his prolific transfer negotiations and is at the heart of any potential deal.
It comes after a move for Gyokeres had been set back by a supposed u-turn from Sporting CP president Frederico Varandas. It had been expected that Gyokeres would be allowed to leave the Portuguese club for £59 million under a gentleman’s agreement, however Varandas rubbished those claims and insisted that the player’s £85 million price tag must be activated.
Gyokeres and Sesko deals hit complications
Varanda has said of the Gyokeres situation recently: “I can guarantee that Viktor Gyokeres will not leave for 60m euros plus 10m euros because I never promised that. To this day Sporting has not had an offer for Gyokeres - neither today nor last season."
Meanwhile, progress with Sesko has been slow with The Sun claiming that the player’s camp are looking to land a lucrative deal that may not be viable for the Premier League outfit. The feeling is that the RB Leipzig man, who is five years younger than Gyokeres, is the number one target for Arsenal. The Gunners are said to be willing to pay the £70 million asking price demanded by the Bundesliga outfit but personal terms could be significantly more than what is viable for the Gunners.
Nonetheless, as per Romano, there is reason for optimism that both deals could still happen for Arsenal. The Gyokeres and Sesko transfer saga seems far from over yet.
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