Monumental first Arsenal summer signing gets significant green light as Arteta persistence pays off

Arsenal are expected to accelerate plans to sign Viktor Gyokeres in the next few days after his transfer was given a significant double green light and with the fee the Gunners are expected to pay Sporting Lisbon and length of deal the player is set to be offered also coming to light.

The Gunners now face a battle to finish second this season and could yet miss out on the Champions League altogether if they don’t pick up good results in their last two Premier League games of the season. Indeed, Sunday’s showdown with Newcastle at Emirates Stadium has now taken on added significance for both sides, with a defeat leaving Arsenal in danger of slipping out the top five on the final day of the season.

And while their fate still lies in their own hands, it is another season of wondering what might have been for Arsenal, who have finished as runners-up in the previous two Premier League campaigns.

Indeed, having looked strongly into the signing of a new centre forward over the previous three transfer windows, Mikel Arteta now finally looks set to dip his toes into the transfer market this summer and bring in the focal-point number nine many feel they have lacked for so long now.

Reports earlier this week suggested Arsenal’s choice would come down to either Benjamin Sesko or Gyokeres this summer.

However, according to Football Insider, the Gunners have now made significant strides towards the signing of the Sporting CP man after a major double green light from the player himself and from the Portuguese side over a summer deal.

They claim that Arteta’s persistence in chasing the Swede, who has scored an incredible 98 goals in 100 games for his club over the last two seasons, is finally set to pay off, with the striker himself now having decided that it is Emirates Stadium where he wants to make his home next season.

Speaking on the Inside Track podcast, journalist Pete O’Rourke now claims there is a ‘willingness’ for all parties to accept the deal.

“For Gyokeres, talks are advancing between Arsenal and his representatives,” he said.

“[Gyokeres] is emerging as the number one choice for Arsenal, and it seems there’s a willingness from all parties to get the deal done.

“The player is happy to come and Sporting CP are happy to sell.”

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Gyokeres to Arsenal: What a deal will cost and how big a deal he will sign

It’s been previously reported that Arteta had been more keen on a deal for Sesko, but has been talked around over Gyokeres by the club’s new sporting director, Andrea Berta.

To that end, journalist David Ornstein this week hinted at the strong reservations the Gunners chief had found over the Slovenian in a major update this week.

As a result, the north London side are expected to go all in for Gyokeres this week and having learned Sporting are willing to sell for a fee in the region of £60.5m (€72m, $83m).

Arsenal are also reported to be willing to offer the 26-year-old an initial four-year deal, worth around around £180,000 a week. That will dwarf his current take-home pay in the Portuguese capital which is an estimated £39,000 (€46,000) a week.

Arteta himself has not commented directly on Arsenal’s hunt for a new striker, but has indicated his side are planning a big summer of recruitment.

“It’s going to be a big one and we are very excited about it,” Arteta said in a press conference last month.

“But now, when you are going to go again, we want to increase the depth of the squad, but as well we want to increase the quality and the skills that we need to go to the next step.”

Arsenal transfer latest: Glamour Real Madrid signing ‘ruled out’; 

Meanwhile, a former Tottenham man has told the Gunners that they are “not an attractive proposition” for a Real Madrid star they would like to sign this summer, while also suggesting they could struggle to finance the deal anyway.

However, the Gunners are reportedly in ‘pole position’ to land another LaLiga star this summer, and they could it for just HALF of his asking price with his club desperate to avoid financial issues.

There is also growing optimism that William Saliba will soon sign a new deal at Emirates Stadium. And while the Frenchman is the dream signing for Real Madrid, Fabrizio Romano has revealed the move is “impossible” in the coming transfer window.

Sesko v Gyokeres: Who would be the better signing for Arsenal?