Arsenal's Summer Transfer Plans: Targeting Strikers and Wingers
Arsenal’s title party is still in full swing, but Josh Kroenke has already drawn the battle lines for what comes next. The Premier League has been won. The Champions League final against PSG in Budapest looms. After that, the World Cup in North America will scatter Mikel Arteta’s squad across a continent Kroenke knows better than most.
And then the real scramble begins.
Alvarez slips away
Inside Arsenal, nobody is pretending recruitment is the priority this week. PSG, Kylian Mbappé’s shadow, and the chance of a first Champions League crown dominate every conversation at London Colney.
Yet the market moves whether you’re watching or not, and one of the more intriguing striker options is already sliding off the table.
Julian Alvarez, the Atletico Madrid forward admired in north London, is edging towards Barcelona. Atletico sporting chief Andrea Berta, who first lured the Argentine to Spain, has been fighting to keep him in red and white, but the player’s stance is clear.
Sources involved in the negotiations have confirmed to football.london that Alvarez only wants Barcelona, despite interest from Arsenal and PSG. A bid has gone in from the Catalan club and been rejected, but Alvarez has told Atletico he wants the move.
Diego Simeone’s side will dig in over the fee. They always do. Yet with the player pushing for Camp Nou, it is hard to picture Arsenal turning this one around.
Alvarez knows England. He has two Premier League titles from his time at Manchester City. He also knows what Barcelona represents to South American forwards. For him, the path looks set.
Kroupi off-limits
That setback does not leave Arsenal short of goals or short of ideas. Arteta’s side have just powered their way to a title. A new striker is on the list, but not at the top of it.
Eli Junior Kroupi is one name that has come under serious consideration. The Bournemouth forward has caught the eye of most of the division, not just Arsenal, after scoring 13 league goals in his debut Premier League season.
He looks like the sort of profile Arsenal have targeted under Arteta: young, explosive, technically sharp, with clear upside.
But Bournemouth have closed the door.
Club sources on the south coast confirmed on Thursday that Kroupi will not be sold this summer. With the Cherries preparing for their first-ever European campaign, they see him as a pillar, not a tradeable asset. They want to build around Kroupi, Rayan and Alex Scott, who has just been offered a new contract.
Manchester City are among several clubs who admire Kroupi, yet the numbers being discussed tell their own story. It would take a huge offer, potentially up to £85million, to tempt Bournemouth to the table. For now, they are under no pressure to sell and have no intention of blinking.
For Arsenal, that likely means a pivot. The striker search can wait or move onto different profiles. The squad, as it stands, is not desperate in that area.
Eyes on the wings and in midfield
The more pressing need sits out wide.
A left-winger is high on the agenda, and Arsenal will get a close-up view of one of their key targets in Budapest. PSG’s Bradley Barcola is admired in north London, a wide forward with the blend of pace, craft and directness that fits neatly into Arteta’s structure.
Beat him in a Champions League final now, try to tempt him in the summer. That is the type of dual-track thinking that defines elite clubs.
Midfield, too, is under review. Arsenal want extra depth and quality in the centre of the pitch, aware that the demands of defending a title and going deep in Europe will stretch even this upgraded group. There is also the possibility of movement at right-back, an area that has already seen tactical reshaping under Arteta but could yet be reinforced again.
The plan is not to rip anything up. It is to sharpen, to add layers, to stay half a step ahead of the teams already plotting to chase them down.
Kroenke’s warning shot
Josh Kroenke is not pretending this will be a quiet summer.
“The business never stops,” he told NBC Sports when asked about the months ahead. “So, right now there are other teams that are already trying to strengthen to come at us for next season. So we need to be aware of that.
“We’ve already had a few conversations about different areas that we think we can improve, both on and off the pitch. We are looking forward to getting that going this summer.
“It is going to be an interesting one because of the World Cup, but fortunately everybody is coming to the United States, so I don’t have to travel for once.”
It is a revealing glimpse into the mindset at the top of the club. The title has not dulled the edge. If anything, it has sharpened it.
Alvarez is drifting towards Barcelona. Kroupi is locked down at Bournemouth. Barcola will stand in Arsenal’s way in Budapest before any attempt is made to bring him to London. Other names will emerge, other deals will collapse, and the market will twist around the World Cup’s unusual timing.
Arsenal have climbed back to the summit. The question now is simple: how ruthlessly will they spend to stay there?
