Julian Alvarez signs as Martinelli leaves - Arsenal's dream transfer window end

Julian Alvarez signs for Arsenal as Martinelli leaves - Arteta’s dream transfer window end Make us your Google favourite Arsenal are widely considered to be hot favourites to lift the Premier League title again, but the Gunners are determined to cash in on their position of dominance by strengthening their team further this summer. Mikel Arteta and sporting director Andrea Berta have had the luxury of being picky in the transfer market. With a strong squad and stable management, they have freshened up their squad with three new arrivals . Bruno Guimaraes, Ezri Konsa and Christos Tzolis each represent one new arrival for each line at the club, while the confirmation of Piero Hincapie’s stay following a loan move means that the Gunners have spent a total of €227 million this summer. Compared to many of their Premier League rivals, this is a comparatively small spend, although they have not done too much in the way of sales. This highlights that a major priority is increasing the depth of the squad this summer, having run out of steam in the Champions League final last time around. There is still business that Arsenal would love to complete before the transfer deadline, though. Sign Alvarez and secure the next Saliba Arsenal made it clear when they chased Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior earlier this summer that they are prepared to go big for a player if the opportunity presents itself, which it seems to be doing with Julian Alvarez of Atletico Madrid. The Argentina international has grown unsettled at the Wanda Metropolitano and based on his body language, is itching for a move. insider sources indicates that a deal could be possible in the region of €150 million, and while this would represent a club-record buy for Arsenal, based on the Vini scenario from a matter of weeks back, it’s certainly something they would consider. The media indicates that it’s possible that a deal could be engineered at a lower price by sending players in the opposite direction. Although Arsenal are otherwise looking pretty complete, another smart move would be to sign Lens’ rising star centre-back Ismaelo Ganiou before sending him back to the Ligue 1 club on loan. Ganiou is rapidly evolving as Ligue 1’s next top centre-back prospect, and acting early could be key to securing his future. William Saliba was signed three years before he broke into Arteta’s thinking, and a similar approach from Ganiou would be a sharp way to tie down a prospect for the future before too much competition emerges at a high price. €75m double deal for Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli Sales are a big part of Arsenal’s plans for the final week of the transfer window. Gabriel Jesus is already attracting significant interest from Serie A, with Napoli and Romano both thought to be interested in the Brazil international, who could fetch a price in the region of €20m. Everton are also tracking him. A more important move, at least in terms of Alvarez’s arrival, is Gabriel Martinelli . The left-sided attacker is being linked with a move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal, which would be the dream destination from Arsenal’s perspective due to the finances involved. A fee of €55-70m is being discussed. Inter Milan could also sign the 25-year-old. Other players likely to leave are Fabio Vieira, Reiss Nelson and Ethan Nwaneri. All this leaves the situation of Myles Lewis-Skelly hanging in the air. The youngster finds himself in a difficult spot. Bruno Guimaraes’ arrival knocks him out of the reckoning in the heart of the midfield while Arteta seems to prefer the profile of Riccardo Calafiori and Piero Hincapie at left-back. With this in mind, a paying loan to a big club in another Big 5 league might be the optimal solution for the next year, giving him playing experience at a high level but, crucially, keeping him on Arsenal’s books.