Arsenal column: Gyokeres agreement in principle, another signing fully agreed & what to watch out for next

Agreement in principle for Viktor Gyokeres after excellent work by Andrea Berta

We’re still waiting on a full agreement between Arsenal and Sporting over Viktor Gyokeres.

A deal in principle has been in place since the weekend after a breakthrough in talks on Sunday. The framework of the deal is done, but it seems to be that the final sticking point is around how exactly the add-ons will be met.

Arsenal are confident that a deal will be agreed, but I wouldn’t want to put a timeframe on when that will be.

It could happen at any point, with Arsenal obviously keen to get Gyokeres through the door as quickly as possible to help with his acclimatisation.

Mikel Arteta and his squad head out to Asia on Saturday for the start of their pre-season tour and Andrea Berta and the club have been pushing to get the majority of the club’s transfer targets in by then.

Whether the last few details of the Gyokeres deal can be ironed out by then we’ll have to wait and see, but Arsenal would certainly like that, as you would think the player would.

If Arsenal get this one over the line I think Berta will get a lot of credit for the way he has handled the negotiations.

It hasn’t been easy because Sporting have understandably looked to play hardball, which is absolutely their right given how crucial a player Gyokeres has been for them over the past two years.

But Berta has stayed patient and the deal he has struck is a good one. You can’t really argue with an initial fee of around £55 million for a striker with Gyokeres’ recent record.

Yes, there are question marks over the Portuguese league and whether he will be able to replicate annoying close to his level of goalscoring exploits in the Premier League, but even so, it’s a good price for such a free-scoring striker in the current market.

Ultimately the deal will be judged on what Gyokeres goes on to do for Arsenal, but right now it looks like excellent work from Berta as he continues to navigate his way through his first transfer window at the club.

Cristhian Mosquera to Arsenal has been fully agreed

While there are still some details to be ironed out over the Gyokeres deal, that is not the case when it comes to Arsenal’s pursuit of Cristhian Mosquera.

That is a move that has now been fully agreed between Arsenal and Valencia, with Mosquera already in London to undergo his medical and complete the formalities before signing.

If all goes to plan, then Mosquera will be announced as an Arsenal player later in the week and he will be on the plane that leaves for the pre-season tour to Asia on Saturday.

I’m really excited about this deal I have to say.

First of all, it looks like a very good one money wise. Again, it looks to have been masterfully negotiated by Andrea Berta.

Arsenal are paying less than Mosquera’s release clause, with the initial fee for the 21-year-old set to come in under £15m.

That’s a very good price for a highly-rated young defender who was being looked at by several other good sides across Europe.

But it’s not just the price that excites me about Mosquera, it’s the potential.

I can’t pretend to be an expert on him, but the limited knowledge I’ve gained from looking into him and speaking to people who have watched him a lot suggests that he is an exceptional talent.

He’s a right-footed centre-back, but is very comfortable with either foot, so there is versatility there which is an attribute Mikel Arteta looks for in all his players.

He’s big, athletic and good on the ball. He’s durable as well, as his availability record shows over the past two seasons.

He has started 70 of 72 league games for Valencia since coming into the team in August, 2023. During that time he has clocked up 6,394 minutes in La Liga, which is the highest by anyone aged 21 or under in Europe’s top-five leagues.

That’s really impressive stuff and I think he will come in and play a big part next season.

He’s not going to start ahead of William Saliba, but he’s still going to play a lot of football and his arrival finally gives Arteta some natural back-up for the Frenchman, who has been overused in the past three seasons.

Noni Madueke can prove his doubters wrong

I’m not the biggest fan of the Noni Madueke move, mainly because it has just become a bit tiresome to see Arsenal consistently signing players from Chelsea.

I know that shouldn’t matter, but it does to a lot of people. The fee also feels a bit high for a player who is far from a guaranteed starter given he has Bukayo Saka ahead of him in the pecking order.

But there is certainly real potential there and I know Arsenal are very happy with the price they have paid.

They believe it matches up well to what other players of Madueke’s profile have moved for this summer and are adamant that in a couple of years time people will look on it as an excellent piece of business.

Mikel Arteta has really been pushing this deal, he believes Madueke can thrive in an environment like Arsenal’s and does not view him as a back-up. He is bringing him in to play a lot of games, whether that be on the right or on the left.

The reaction to the transfer has been pretty brutal, especially online, so Madueke is immediately going to be under pressure when he arrives. I do think some of the more hostile reaction has lessened somewhat now, however, given Arsenal have moved for a striker and that Ethan Nwaneri is close to signing a new contract.

Neither of those things had happened when the Madueke news first broke and I think they played a big part in a lot of the more over the top reaction we initially saw.

I know that Madueke really wants this move, as does his family. So it is a bit sad that they have to worry about fan unrest at a time when they should be really excited about what is a big moment in his career.

But I’m sure he will be able to deal with that and Arsenal will help him through it.

And at the end of the day if he performs on the pitch then he will very quickly silence his doubters. He only has to look at Aaron Ramsdale and Kai Havertz for proof of that.

Eberechi Eze and player sales – what to watch out for next in Arsenal’s summer transfer window

So far this has been a summer window focused on experience and signing the here and now. But this deal is different. It’s one with an eye on the future and I think it’s excellent business.

As soon as the deals for Gyokeres, Noni Madueke and Mosquera are wrapped up, all focus will switch to whether Arsenal can complete the window by adding a left sided attacking option.

We know there is interest in Eberechi Eze, although at this point it is my understanding that talks have only taken place with the England international’s representatives, rather than with Crystal Palace, though CaughtOffside’s Mark Brus has been among the others to report different information.

Rodrygo is another player on the club’s radar, with the Brazilian’s future at Real Madrid very much up in the air following his lack of game time at the Club World Cup.

Out of the two I would say Eze would be the easier deal to do, purely from a financial perspective, but I couldn’t say right now who the club will end up going up for. It would just be guesswork at this point.

Both are players of interest, but I think it will come down to the finances involved. Arsenal have spent a lot of money already this summer, so they might need to do a bit of work now trying to balance the books a bit before completing the final piece of the jigsaw from a squad building point of view.

So I would say that once the trio of Gyokeres, Madueke and Mosquera are through the door attention will turn to trying to move a few players on.

With all the new arrivals the squad is suddenly looking very bloated and Andrea Berta will be looking to find takers for players like Reiss Nelson, Sambi Lokonga, Fabio Vieira and maybe Oleksandr Zinchenko.