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When Andrea Berta replaced Edu as Arsenal’s sporting director on March 30, three tasks sat at the top of his in-tray: land a world-class striker, secure the long-term futures of key stars, and shift fringe players for serious money.
The work has begun but nearly three months on – and with the transfer window open since June 1 – Arsenal fans are getting fidgety. While Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City have splashed the cash, the Gunners have yet to unveil a single signing.
Liverpool, weeks after lifting the title, have splurged over £150million on Florian Wirtz, Giorgi Mamardashvili and Jeremie Frimpong with £40m Milos Kerkez on his way. City have spent over £100m on Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Ait Nouri and Rayan Cherki.
But the Gunners are not panicking. The signing of midfielder Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad, which has been in place since January, will be announced in the coming weeks – Sociedad want it done in July so it counts to the next financial year – and the deal for goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga from Chelsea is set to be sealed this week.
It’s also understood that Arsenal have agreed personal terms with Brentford midfielder Christian Norgaard as Thomas Partey, who is out of contract on July 1, nears the exit. Norgaard is tied to the club until 2027 and wants to keep his family settled in London but would love the chance to move to Arsenal and end his career challenging for titles and competing in the Champions League.
It’s the lack of transfer action in the forward line, though, which is most worrying fans. But, behind the scenes, Berta is hard at work. Mail Sport understands that boss Mikel Arteta wants a striker in before their pre-season tour of Singapore and Hong Kong, which they fly out for on July 19. And the position is front and centre of the club’s priority list.
It’s understood that the fee paid for a frontman will, to a degree, dictate Arsenal’s budget for other positions. Once the price for this striker is secured, the other chips will start to fall into place, with left-wing options to also be reassessed with the favoured Nico Williams looking like he is on his way to Barcelona.
Both Benjamin Sesko of RB Leipzig and Sporting Lisbon’s Viktor Gyokeres are on Arsenal’s radar, but it’s understood that Sesko is the priority.
Sources close to the club suggest that Sporting Lisbon’s keenness to offload Gyokeres has become clearer by the day and arguably weakened their hand. Internally, there was already reservations over the 27-year-old because Portugal’s Primeira Liga is a totally different proposition to the Premier League, even though he scored 39 league goals last season.
Berta is said to have other striker options in mind, too. If a deal for Sesko or Gyokeres was not to materialise, the prospect of a surprise name entering the frame is a possibility.
Arsenal and Berta are adopting the softly-softly approach so as not to be forced to pay over the odds. It contrasts with his predecessor Edu, who would zero in on a single target.
Sources say RB Leipzig are driving a hard bargain over Sesko because they know how desperate the Gunners are for a striker and the limited availability of world-class frontmen in football today. And this explains the delay.
On the overall strategy, deals will accelerate next month which is in line with previous summer windows. In 2021, Arsenal signed Ben White on July 30 and Aaron Ramsdale on August 20. In 2022, Gabriel Jesus arrived on July 4 and Oleksandr Zinchenko followed in the same month. In 2023, Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber signed on July 15 and 14 respectively. And then last year, the Gunners brought in Riccardo Calafiori on July 29 and Mikel Merino on August 27.
However, it’s the club’s panic signature of Raheem Sterling on loan from Chelsea on the August 30 deadline day which still haunts fans and leaves them hoping business is not left too late.
Berta and Arsenal are also being proactive in securing the futures of key players. Myles Lewis-Skelly, 18, who became a first-team regular last season, signed a long-term contract last week, and Gabriel Magalhaes has also committed his future to the club. Arsenal also want to tie down Bukayo Saka and William Saliba, who both have two years left on their deals, and Ethan Nwaneri. Leandro Trossard has been in talks over a new deal to 2029, as reported by Mail Sport.
In terms of the outgoings, a number of fringe players have been earmarked for the exit. They include Reiss Nelson and Oleksandr Zinchenko, who both earn over £100,000 a week, Jakub Kiwior, Fabio Vieira and Albert Sambi Lokonga.
Steve Kell, who has sat on the Arsenal Supporters Club committee for over 20 years, is not concerned by the lack of activity. He tells Mail Sport: ‘I’m not panicking at all because the financial year and tax year for Arsenal starts from the 1st of next month.
‘It would be silly to start doing transfers on last year’s financial year rather than waiting for this year’s budget when all the financial fair play rules and everything else that goes with it sets in.
‘It’s Arsenal being astute enough to maximise their potential spending by spending at the right time. The delay isn’t an issue if it’s for those reasons.
‘Of course the longer they leave it, the more nervous the fans will be. But it also adds more muscle to Arsenal the longer they leave it as it’s a game of poker against the other clubs.’
Until the marquee names are through the door, the pressure remains on Arsenal. But with deliberate targets, patience, and key contract renewals in place, Berta and Co appear set for a decisive summer.
Additional reporting by Matt Barlow
