Arsenal pursue THREE strikers as Gyokeres stance emerges after Man Utd snub

Arsenal are working hard behind the scenes in their bid to sign an elite striker and have done work on potential deals for top targets Viktor Gyokeres and Benjamin Sesko

Arsenal are staging their own “beauty pageant” as they are actively pursuing deals for both Viktor Gyokeres AND Benjamin Sesko.

While they do not plan to sign two strikers, Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta is keeping his options open and has held advanced discussions over both players. They are also not ruling out a move on other targets as Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins is still on the radar after a January switch fell down.

They have also previously been linked with Alexander Isak and Julian Alvarez but Gyokeres and Sesko are the two most likely targets.

Mirror Football revealed on June 6 that Gyokeres prefers a move to Arsenal ahead of any other club despite interest from Manchester United as well as teams in Spain and Italy.

Gyokeres, 27, has been locked in a dispute with Sporting Lisbon with the Portuguese club angrily denying there was a “gentleman’s agreement” to allow the Sweden striker to leave for £60m.

Sporting president Frederico Varandas accused Gyokeres' agent of “playing games” over the price and there is now a bitter stand-off developing. That may be a key factor in the stand-off because Arsenal are having to weigh up several options in their pursuit of a new No9 - and price is a major factor.

Sesko, 22, could potentially be allowed to leave RB Leipzig for £60m-plus and the Slovenian was close to joining Arsenal last summer before deciding to stay in Germany for one more year.

There has been interest in Sesko from other clubs - Bayern Munich have been the latest to be linked - but Arsenal put in a lot of groundwork last year and Gunners boss Arteta is a big admirer of his potential.

It should not be overlooked that Mikel Arteta still rates Kai Havertz incredibly highly as a forward, as a player and also for his versatility.

Gyokeres is older, could be more ready to hit the ground running now and has been prolific for Sporting but it is the Portuguese league and the ex-Brighton and Coventry striker could be a gamble. He is more of a classic centre forward. Sesko is quick, tall and has huge potential while his attributes also mean that he could work with Havertz. He has big growth as a player and even looks similar to Isak in some regards. Watkins would be keen on a switch to Arsenal.

It is an unusual approach to keep different players in the mix but Berta has a strong reputation and is under big pressure to deliver the right striker. A big factor for Arsenal is being able to land a top name striker but also have more money to spend on other targets with Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi set to arrive for £51m.

But one player unlikely to be going is Riccardo Calafiori after AC Milan made an enquiry - but they were rebuffed by Arsenal and the Italy defender also wants to stay in London.

That is why AC Milan are now pursuing a move for Arsenal’s Oleksandr Zinchenko who would be allowed to leave this summer. Zinchenko, 28, has one year left on his current deal and wages are still a sticking point but AC Milan are ready to push to get the deal done. They have also previously been interested in Arsenal’s Jakub Kiwior but his impressive end to the campaign may mean the Gunners want him to stay.

Zinchenko has become surplus to requirements after losing his guaranteed starting place and his £200,000-a-week plus wages will also help Arsenal begin a summer reshuffle.

They have been linked with Ajax’s Jorrel Hato but also want to get some players out to allow them to bring in new squad additions.