Arsenal ‘plan to make summer move’ for Ballon d’Or winner to replace Gyokeres amid contract deadlock

Arsenal are seriously considering a summer bid to take Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele away from Paris Saint-Germain, according to reports.

The Gunners spent over £250m in the summer transfer window as the Arsenal hierarchy gave Mikel Arteta all the tools to make a charge on all fronts.

And that is exactly what the Spaniard is doing with Arsenal four points clear of Manchester City at the top of the Premier League, into the League Cup final, through to the fifth round of the FA Cup and qualified for the Champions League last-16.

It has been a brilliant season so far for the Gunners but there has still been criticism of Arteta and his style of play, which has been seen as “boring” by some.

One player who has been in the firing line is huge summer signing Gyokeres with the Sweden international signing from Sporting CP in the summer for around £64m.

Gyokeres scored 97 goals in 102 matches for the Portuguese outfit before joining Arsenal, where he has bagged 13 goals in 34 games.

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Supporters had expected much more from the Swede and now Arsenal could given him more competition or even replace him in the summer transfer window.

Spanish website Fichajes insists that PSG star Dembele ‘could change clubs in the summer because he has not renewed his contract’ and Arsenal ‘intend to capitalise’ on the uncertainty

The report adds: ‘Faced with this internal tension, London’s offices have begun to explore the feasibility of a transfer that would shake up the Premier League.’

Arsenal are ‘seriously considering signing the current Ballon d’Or winner’ with Arteta ‘looking for players who can bring unpredictability and individual flair’.

With just 18 months left on his contract in Paris, the report continues: ‘The London club’s management plans to make a move next summer, hoping that the friction between the player and the PSG structure will continue to escalate. For the Gunners, securing this signing would represent a major statement of intent on the world stage, snatching one of the current European champions’ most important players.’

Former Arsenal centre-back Mikael Silvestre recently claimed that Arteta’s tactics do not suit Gyokeres amid criticism of the striker.

Silvestre told Esports Insider: “Victor Gyokeres can bring a lot to this Arsenal team, purely because of the way he is built. He can take advantage of centre-backs by bullying them out of the way, and a good example of that is making runs from the back post. Arsenal are a team that utilise set-pieces really well, so that is one way he can be a real danger.

“On the other hand, the Gunners aren’t really a traditional ‘crossing’ team, which may not entirely work in Gyokeres’ favour. Mikel Arteta needs to play more to Gyokeres’ strengths, because it’s currently challenging for him to contribute on a consistent basis.

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“Arsenal are not a team that rely on a lone striker or target man; it’s a group effort and everyone chips in. It also takes time to get used to your new teammates, and for the squad to understand and learn how you make runs and where you ask for the ball to be played.

“His integration into the team is still a work in progress because of Arteta’s style of play, so he should be granted more time to show his quality.”

Former Arsenal winger Jermaine Pennant insists that Gyokeres is “just not clicking” at the Emirates Stadium with fans not treated to “anything special from him”.

Pennant told BetSelect: “Mikel Arteta has stuck by Gyokeres and given him ample time to make it work, but it’s just not clicking. He’s scoring a few goals, but not as many as the club thought he would and they’re not coming in big games. We’ve seen enough from him to know it just isn’t going to happen for him in the Premier League.

“We know players, especially strikers, need time to adapt. However, Gyokeres has been starting week-in, week-out since the beginning of the season and we haven’t really seen anything special from him. Arsenal paid a lot of money for him to take the goalscoring burden away from the likes of Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard, but he’s not doing that.

“They can’t stick with him forever when he’s not showing any signs of improvement. We’ve seen enough to know what level he is at and what he can offer, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to be enough.”

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