Gyokeres Arsenal, Duran Chelsea and more

This article was originally published on the Daily Briefing, a subscription service. If you would like to receive Ben Jacobs’ exclusive transfer columns via email ahead of publication on caughtoffside.com, please sign-up for the service here: thedailybriefing.io.

Arsenal are searching for another striker after Benjamin Sesko decided to stay at Leipzig. A renewal, on new lucrative terms, was always a concrete possibility. Arsenal’s pitch was strong, but Sesko felt staying an extra was better for his development. There is a gentleman’s agreement he can still be sold in summer 2025.

Arsenal have plenty of other options on their list, including Evan Ferguson and Viktor Gyokeres. They are also keeping a very close eye on the Joshua Zirkzee situation. Milan are pushing to complete a deal, but if it falls through I expect Arsenal to be in the conversation for the Bologna striker.

Alongside looking for a new striker, Arsenal still see midfield as a priority. The kind of midfielder they’re looking for will be defined by whether they see Declan Rice as a predominant no.6 or no.8 – though that’s not to say that Mikel Arteta will be so rigid as to force him to play in only one role, but the profile they’ll look for will have to complement Rice.

Martin Zubimendi is still a realistic possibility, though the challenge there is persuading him to leave Real Sociedad. He’s very happy there and that’s why he stayed at the club in January, though that was also with Champions League football to look forward to in the second half of the season, and now it would be all about persuading the player to leave a club that he’s really settled at.

We also know that Arsenal have looked at Douglas Luiz before, but they’re not engaged in negotiations with him at the moment – it’s all about Aston Villa and Juventus. The feeling amongst most in the industry is that Villa need to sell before they can buy, while Juventus need to offer players as part of the deal, with Weston McKennie being one who might return to England. If anything falls through, Arsenal would maybe see a window of opportunity, knowing that Arsenal need to raise funds, but Zubimendi is a more likely target than Luiz.

We know that Arsenal appreciate Bruno Guimaraes too, but they haven’t made a concrete move and have no plans to trigger his release clause. If anyone moves there, it’s likely to be Manchester City, but with no one planning to trigger his clause, clubs may wait and see if they can…