Arsenal submit £86m bid to sign new striker

When Kai Havertz scored just six minutes into the Champions League final to give Arsenal the lead, this season just felt like it was meant to be.

For an hour, the Gunners looked like European winners. Six days on from lifting the Premier League, another trophy was on the way.

Well, that was until Khvicha Kvaratskhelia worked his magic and drew a penalty, one that Ousmane Dembele fired home.

It was a game that will always be remembered for a penalty, but not Dembele’s. With the decisive penalty kick in the shoot-out, Gabriel fired high into the crowd and Arsenal’s dreams were extinguished.

Still, what a season this was. Their wait for a Champions League title goes on but for the first time in 22 years, they can call themselves the champions of England.

That’s incredibly exciting as the Gunners head into a transfer window where they could go very big again to capitalise on their high.

Arsenal submit bid to sign new striker

Speaking after the final, Mikel Arteta was understandably distraught with the events that had played out in Budapest but there was one quote in particular that stood out.

Talking to reporters he said: “We start to make some very important decisions if we want to reach another level. And we’re going to have to show that ambition. We are more than capable of doing it, but it’s going to demand us to be very, very ambitious, very fast and very smart.”

There is nothing cryptic about this; Arteta wants most investment if they are to bridge the gap between them and PSG in Europe.

Arsenal have already overcome the challenge of Manchester City at domestic level but their only two defeats in continental action over the last year have been to the two time winners.

So, how do you go about improving? Well, a new striker would certainly help.

Reports in recent weeks have outlined the club’s interest in Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez and it would appear they are now ramping up their interest to sign the Argentine.

That’s according to Argentine journalist Veronica Brunati who reported this weekend that Arsenal have already submitted their first bid, worth £86m plus a player, to Atleti.

That, however, is unlikely to be accepted. Amid further interest from Barcelona, the club Alvarez is allegedly giving priority to, Atleti have made it known they want any fee to eclipse the £104m fee they sold Antoine Griezmann for.

How Julian Alvarez compares to Kai Havertz

Arteta had an enormous call to make for the final on Saturday and that was to decide who started as the striker.

Viktor Gyokeres ended the campaign as Arsenal’s top scorer with 21 goals in all competitions but it was not the Swede who started. Instead, it was the man for the big occasion, Havertz.

The German was the lone goalscorer when Chelsea won the final back in 2021 and Arteta’s call was vindicated just six minutes in when Havertz raced clear of the PSG backline and fired high into the roof of the net to give Arsenal the lead.

That said, Havertz is not a ruthless centre-forward. Gyokeres has him trumped as far as goalscoring is concerned. When it comes to build up play, the former is better.

It makes the two of them valuable to the squad. Having two very different options enables Arsenal to put together different plans for the make up of their forward line.

However, if Arteta’s side are going to reach that next level, an elite number 9 is required. This is where Alvarez comes into the equation.

Once celebrated as the “best centre forward in the world” by South American journalist Roy Nemer, he may well have been surpassed by Harry Kane and Co since those comments but he still a “monster” in the words of Argentine reporter Pablo Gonzalez.

In 2024/25, his debut campaign at Atleti, he netted 29 goals. This season, he bagged 20. To put those numbers into context, they are better than Havertz has ever achieved across the course of a season.

His best haul at Arsenal was 15 which came last season while the best of his career was back in 2018/19 with Leverkusen when he netted 20 in 42 matches.

Yet, what really separates Alvarez from the strikers already at Arsenal is his overall play. Like something of an Alexis Sanchez, this is a player who thrives as more of a false 9 player.

The 26-year-old loves scoring goals but he’s also an amazing creator. He registered ten assists in all competitions this term and amassed 13 in his final campaign with Manchester City.

One of the reasons Arteta has favoured Havertz in the big moments over Gyokeres this season is his combination play. The ball sticks to him more regularly and his link-up play is excellent. Yet, Alvarez is even better in that regard.

The World Cup winner ranks within the top 9% of strikers in Europe’s top five leagues for expected threat in the build-up phases of play. Gyokeres ranks in the worst 20% and Havertz ranks in the top 50%.

While Alvarez has been fielded as more of an out-and-out striker in the Spanish capital, he’s more than comfortable at dropping deep and would represent the ideal upgrade on Arsenal’s current forward options.

After a season in which they won the league and finished as runners-up in the Champions League final, now is not the time to stand still. Josh Kroenke and Co must go big again to really ram home the momentum they have built up in the last few years.