Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is reportedly pushing the Gunners to spend their entire summer transfer budget on two Newcastle United players – with the double deal set to cost an eye-watering £150m.
The Gunners have made serious strides over the last two seasons – emerging as the side most likely to dethrone Manchester City as champions of England. But while Arsenal fell just short last time around, they currently lead Pep Guardiola’s side by a point with just two games left to play for the north London side.
And while their title rivals do still have a game in hand, Pep Guardiola’s men will likely need a win over Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Tuesday May 14 if they are to win the title for a fourth successive season.
Like all well-run clubs though, Arsenal know they still have further improvements to make. And a big part of their summer transfer strategy will see the club look to fix what is still perceived as two areas of weakness in the Gunners squad.
First up, Arteta’s side could very much benefit from signing a top-class midfield partner for Player of the Year contender Declan Rice. They spend £105m to the England man across London from West Ham last summer, with the 25-year-old proving himself worthy of the sizeable investment.
While Jorginho looks set to stay, Arsenal would benefit from an upgrade to Thomas Partey, who has suffered with injuries this season and who TEAMtalk has revealed will be allowed to move on if they receive a suitable offer for this summer.
As a result, our sources have also informed us that Arsenal have optimism that a massive raid on Newcastle for Bruno Guimaraes can be successful.
Arteta wants Isak and Guimaraes in £150m double deal
Newcastle will likely need to sanction the sale of one of their big names this summer to help keep the club within their FFP limits.
And with Guimaraes valued for at least £80m, the Brazilian is potentially seen as the one player they could potentially allow to move on this summer.
However, the Independent now claims that Arteta is also setting his sights on another significant signing from Newcastle in the shape of star striker Alexander Isak.
Despite scoring 88 times in the Premier League this season – making them the top flight’s most prolific side – their two central strikers in Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah have not been prolific as Arteta would like.
And while Jesus will be retained, TEAMtalk can reveal that offers will be listed to for Nketiah, with the once-capped England striker keen to remain close to his London routes.
As a result, a number of big-money replacements are being considered as an upgrade this summer, with Victor Osimhen, Joshua Zirkzee, Viktor Gyokeres and Ivan Toney among their reported targets.
However, the Independent now reports that it is Sweden striker Isak who has now emerged as the Gunners’ number one striker target this summer.
The 24-year-old has been a regular source of goals for Newcastle since a £63m switch to St James’ Park in August 2022. And while he has had his issues with injuries, the 44-times capped Sweden international has still netted an impressive 24 goals in 37 appearances this season.
Arsenal move for Newcastle striker Isak given thumbs up
Rated at around the £70m to £80m mark, Newcastle would be loathe to lose their prolific frontman and, if they are forced into the sale of one of their top performers this summer, then TEAMtalk understands they would see Isak as the harder of their top stars to replace.
As a result, Eddie Howe is likely to fight tooth and nail to keep the frontman on Newcastle’s books.
The striker has also made clear his happiness in the north east and is not actively seeking a move. But with Arsenal able to offer Champions League football and a club seemingly on the rise under Arteta, he would find a move tough to resist were the Gunners to make a concrete move amid claims that a £150m double move for Guimaraes and Isak could be launched.
Such a move, were it to happen, would effectively blow Arsenal’s entire summer budget on the two Newcastle men. But Arteta and Edu both believe they need to invest in quality rather than quantity now to help the north London giants make the next step forward.
TalkSPORT pundit and former Tottenham striker Darren Bent reckons a move to bring in both Newcastle players would catapult the Gunners into major trophy contenders.
“You know what, I’d blow the whole transfer budget on them two. Got £150m to spend…” he said.
When asked about how Arsenal’s midfield would look with the Brazilian added to the mix, Bent added: “Bruno, [Declan] Rice, [Martin] Odegaard.”
Fellow pundit Andy Goldstein added: “If you got those two, that’s a squad-and-a-half.
“Do you know what, I would go as far as to say if you get them two, keep everyone else and sort your left-back situation out, you’ll have I think your best possible chance of winning the Champions League the following season.”
Arsenal reached the quarter-finals of the competition this season, narrowly squeezed out by Bayern Munich, who won 3-2 on aggregate.
