Elite Arenal target ignites January swap deal talk with spectacular statement on international duty

A top Arsenal attacking target sent a clear message to the Gunners over his talent on Saturday evening when he scored twice for Turkey in a 6-1 rout of Bulgaria, as talk of a potential swap deal gathers pace.

The Gunners have made a strong start to the season, sitting top of the Premier League, having spent over £250million on improving Mikel Arteta’s starting XI in a bid to end their more than 20-year hunt for Premier League title glory.

However, Arsenal remain actively on the lookout for more additions as they double down on giving the Spaniard a pool of players he can rotate in and out without sacrificing the quality in his team.

To that end, the north London outfit are in the mix to sign top Juventus and Turkey talent Kenan Yildiz in the new year – although they are not alone.

Premier League rivals Chelsea and, to a lesser extent, Manchester United are also rumoured to be interested in the 20-year-old left-sided attacker.

And Yildiz puts his full talent on show on Saturday night as he produced two clinical finishes in Turkey’s 6-1 World Cup qualifying win over Bulgaria in Sofia.

Starting on the left wing, Yildiz was given a rating of 8.6/10 by Whoscored for his performance, a figure only bettered by a less likely Arsenal target in Real Madrid’s Arda Guler.

According to Radio Radio in Italy, the Gunners have decided to take their interest in Yildiz a bit further, with a major offer in the pipeline.

Indeed, Arsenal’s ‘concrete offer’ for Yildiz, who is valued at €80-90million (up to £78m, $104.5m) by Juventus, is cash plus injury-prone frontman Gabriel Jesus.

The Gunners’ offer of €50m (£43.4m, $58m) to Juventus for the 20-year-old ‘is on the table’, with the north London club also willing to send Jesus to the Italian giants as part of the deal.

While swap deals were once an extreme within the game, they are now starting to creep back into the transfer market thanks to the way UEFA’s financial rules work, along with the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules.

And, with Jesus having been a target for Juve in the past, Arsenal are looking to try and capitalise on that interest by capturing Yildiz as a result.

Quite what that would mean for the likes of Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard going forward remains to be seen, although Yildiz is also capable of operating as a second striker.

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Yildiz deal for Arsenal far from easy

That being said, there are quite a few complications involved in any bid for Yildiz.

For starters, almost all of the reports coming out of Italy suggest that Juventus would rather not sell the 20-year-old, whose recent performances have marked him out as a star not only of the future, but of the present.

Yildiz is also tied down to a contract until 2029, giving the Serie A side all of the leverage, especially given that there are also no indications that Yildiz himself is likely to try and force a move in the immediate future.

Add in the fact that Jesus is still making his way back from ACL injury, and the chances of a swap deal come the new year look remote, at this stage.

However, money talks and Arsenal still have funds available to make another splashy signing in January, if the club think it could make the difference between lifting major silverware or not.

To that end, a move for Yildiz cannot be completely ruled out, although it’s one that will clearly be tough to pull off.

Latest Arsenal news

Arsenal could sell Leandro Trossard in the January transfer window and plan to replace him with Real Madrid winger Rodrygo, according to a journalist, who has also named the two midfielders that Andrea Berta aims to hand new deals to.

Elsewhere, Fabrizio Romano has verified a claim made by the agent of an Arsenal star about Manchester United forging an agreement to sign the player.

And finally, claims in the Spanish press that Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta is planning a raid on Barcelona for Frenkie de Jong have been squashed by Fabrizio Romano.

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