Arsenal: Report names Arteta transfer priority for January, with £69m Juventus ace already a target
Gleison Bremer, Danilo, Dusan Vlahovic and Adrien Rabiot celebrate Juventus goal
Arsenal have already decided on which position they want to strengthen in the January transfer window, as a report has outlined their interest in signing centre-forward Dusan Vlahovic from Juventus.
Arsenal had a big summer, spending upwards of £200million when bringing in three new players on permanent contracts. They signed midfielder Declan Rice, attacker Kai Havertz and defender Jurrien Timber.
The Gunners also landed goalkeeper David Raya on loan from Brentford. The move includes the option for Arsenal to buy him next summer for £27m.
Rice has had the biggest impact out of those new arrivals, having played every minute of their Premier League campaign so far and scoring a late goal in their 3-1 win over Manchester United. Havertz is still getting used to Mikel Arteta’s system, while Timber is unfortunately out for a prolonged period after sustaining an ACL injury. Raya, meanwhile, is yet to play for his new club.
Such is the nature of football though, Arsenal chiefs and Edu and Arteta are already getting prepared for the next transfer window. And it seems they are ready to revisit their pursuit of Vlahovic.
As per Italian source Tuttomercatoweb, Arteta is aiming to land another striker who can rival Gabriel Jesus for his starting spot. Clearly, he views Havertz as more of an attacking midfielder.
READ MORE: Arsenal summer transfer window 2023 – ranking all the incomings and outgoings
Vlahovic is named as Arteta’s current ‘favourite’ target. This is because the manager has kept tabs on Vlahovic’s development ever since his exceptional spell at Fiorentina.
Juve put the Serbian up for sale in the summer, telling clubs including Arsenal that he could be signed for around €80m (£68.5m). But Arsenal did not take up this opportunity as they had other priorities, including midfield and defence.
Arsenal want Juventus man – report
However, the injury to Jesus has seemingly shown Arteta that he needs another experienced striker in his squad. Even when Jesus is fit, Vlahovic would be able to push the Brazilian hard for his starting place, potentially making both players even better.
The report explains how Vlahovic remains on the market at Juve, as club officials in Turin would like to cash in and improve other parts of the team.
Should Arsenal enter talks for the 23-year-old, then it is likely they would try to talk Juve down from that £68.5m asking price. While Vlahovic has netted 25 goals in 66 games for Juve, his time with the Bianconeri has not gone as well as all parties would have hoped.
Arsenal could try to use this to their advantage and get Vlahovic on board for a reduced price.
Of course, this is far from the first time Arsenal have been linked with the player. They pushed hard to sign him in January 2022, only to miss out to Juve.
At the time, Vlahovic explained how he could not turn down a major club such as Juve. Since then, though, Arsenal have risen up the Prem rankings and were close to winning the title last season, whereas Juve have not won any silverware and fell to seventh in Serie A last term.
Arsenal were once again linked with a move for Vlahovic in the summer, but that did not materialise. It looks like the North London side will try their luck with a January bid, though.
