Arsenal desperately need a striker. Fortunately, the market is full of options.
Viktor Gyokeres and Benjamin Sesko are the two most heavily linked, but there are wildcards, fan dreams and Premier League flops to consider. So here’s a ranking of 10 striker targets — from the Gunners’ dream to who they’ll probably end up signing.
10) Alexander Isak (Newcastle)
He’s the best option, but is ranked 10th because of how unlikely it is to happen.
Newcastle United are demanding north of £120million, which could leave Arsenal in quite a predicament financially if they were to bite the bullet. Had the Magpies missed out on Champions League football, it would’ve been a very interesting summer for Isak and others…
9) Yoane Wissa (Brentford)
There haven’t been many concrete links between Wissa and Arsenal, but with Thomas Frank gone, he could push for a big summer move. At 28, and with 19 Premier League goals last season, it does feel like a case of now or never.
Nottingham Forest reportedly tried to sign him in January and a move to the City Ground feels much more realistic than the Emirates.
Arsenal desperately need a striker, and if they end up with just Wissa – despite him being a very good player – the club’s supporters might quite literally riot. They want a flashy, shiny new toy to brag about. The DR Congo international would be an outstanding signing if Mikel Arteta wants two strikers, though.
8) Ademola Lookman (Atalanta)
Lookman is a different player to the one who struggled in the Premier League for Everton, Fulham and Leicester City. He’s now an elite attacker who boasts a Europa League final hat-trick on his CV, becoming only the sixth player to score three in a European final – and the first since Jupp Heynckes for Borussia Monchengladbach in 1975. A fun little fact for you: Ferenc Puskas is the only player to do this twice.
The Nigerian attacker has been linked with Liverpool and Manchester United, but not so much Arsenal. Even so, he has been loosely mentioned as a potential Gunners striker target, even if he isn’t exactly an out-and-out centre-forward. He’s versatile and effective on the right, left, or through the middle.
Lookman scored 11 goals in 96 Premier League appearances, but has an impressive 60 goal involvements in 93 Serie A games. Surely he fancies another crack at Our League – and Arsenal should consider it if they fail to sign seven other players…
7) Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus)
Vlahovic isn’t the one who got away, nor is he a dodged bullet for Arsenal. The Serbian has proven that he isn’t worth the £70million he cost Juventus in January 2022, when he brutally snubbed the Gunners.
Despite that, Arteta’s team have missed a focal point up front, and the Spanish manager still hasn’t replaced Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang three-and-a-half years on. Vlahovic hasn’t been fantastic for Juve, but he could’ve been the difference-maker Arsenal desperately needed in their 2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25 title pushes.
Out of all the strikers Arsenal are potentially considering right now, Vlahovic is the back-up to the back-up. It’s unlikely with number one on this list so keen to join, and it’s so blatantly between the top two. Still, if he’s available for only £40m, it’s hard to rule Arsenal out.
6) Marcus Thuram (Inter)
There’s potential for Thuram to leave Inter, with reports in Italy suggesting there has been a ‘dressing room spat’. With Simone Inzaghi gone, the exit door is slightly ajar for star striker Lautaro Martinez – who’d be an outstanding signing for any top club in Europe. In fact, it’s a bit surprising Inzaghi isn’t trying to tempt him to Al Hilal, with the Saudi club so publicly searching for a new No.9.
Thuram was a wanted man in the summer of 2023, when he joined Inter on a free transfer from Borussia Monchengladbach. Since then, he’s scored 33 goals and provided 22 assists in 96 matches for the Italian giants. He’d be a top signing for Arsenal – but a very expensive one.
5) Victor Osimhen (Napoli)
This guy would be expensive as well – but still a bargain considering the striker you’re getting.
Al Hilal have tried and failed to sign Osimhen, and Galatasaray have been unable to convince him to join permanently after a very productive campaign on loan.
There’s a surprisingly low level of interest in a player who scored 37 goals in 41 games last term, is only 26 years old, and has 76 goals in 133 games for Napoli – who desperately want shot of the Nigerian.
The Serie A champions reportedly want around £60m, which makes him the joint-cheapest option in the top six. It’s a very decent deal, but there have to be serious question marks regarding his personality – why else would nobody be signing him?
4) Hugo Ekitike (Eintracht Frankfurt)
The finances involved are likely to hold back Ekitike this summer. He flopped badly at PSG, and Frankfurt want £80m after one outstanding season. You can understand clubs being reluctant to pay that – especially when you consider how Randal Kolo Muani has got on since leaving the same club for a colossal fee.
In 2024/25, the 22-year-old scored 22 goals and registered 12 assists in 48 games across all competitions. Those numbers do a lot of talking for Ekitike, but it’s his overall play that makes him such an interesting proposition. He’s absolutely massive, deceptively rapid, mobile, and technically outstanding.
3) Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
The outside shout after a failed bid from Arsenal in January. The Gunners made a desperate and derisory attempt to unsettle Watkins and Villa with a £40m bid in the winter transfer window, but it didn’t come off – and two weeks later, first-choice striker Kai Havertz tore his hamstring. Ideal.
Watkins’ numbers for Villa are outstanding. He’s never scored fewer than 11 in a top-flight season and made the most assists in the Premier League two seasons ago.
He’s an Arsenal fan and will be very keen to make the switch to the Emirates – but not to play second fiddle to either of the two above him here.
2) Benjamin Sesko (RB Leipzig)
Like Ekitike, the fee is monumental – but so is the potential. Leipzig are open to selling, and with no Champions League football on offer, Sesko wants the move. Still, the Slovenian won’t come cheap and isn’t agitating for the move.
Reports suggest Arsenal prefer Sesko to Viktor Gyokeres – the only two players it’s widely regarded the Gunners are seriously considering.
Sesko is younger, but Gyokeres feels more guaranteed to make an instant impact – and that’s exactly what Arsenal need in their quest for a first Premier League title since 2004
1) Viktor Gyokeres (Sporting)
The most likely Arsenal striker signing – and the best option for them, in my humble opinion.
Gyokeres scored 54 goals in 52 matches last season. He’s a bloody demon. Arsenal need him. The Swede will be in the right place nine times out of ten, and more often than not, he’ll hit the back of the net when given a sniff. The Gunners shouldn’t pass up the opportunity to sign such a ruthless No.9 – it’s exactly what they’ve been missing.
