How Arsenal Could Line Up With $375 Million Transfer Wishlist

“We want to reach another level,” Mikel Arteta declared after watching Arsenal come two miscued penalties away from a first Champions League title in the club’s history.

“We’ll start to make some very important decisions,” he warned, “It’s going to demand us to be very, very ambitious, very fast and very smart.”

Ever a man of his word (when it’s not an injury update), Arteta appears to be on the hunt for significant attacking additions this summer. BBC Sport list Bournemouth’s Junior Kroupi, Aston Villa playmaker Morgan Rogers and Atlético Madrid’s talisman Julián Alvarez as three players on Arsenal’s “transfer wishlist.”

To recruit all three would cost an obscene $376.7 million (£280 million) by the report’s estimation, with Kroupi and Rogers’s swollen valuations of $107.6 million apiece dwarfed by the princely sum for Alvarez.

Given the extensive outlay of Arsenal’s recent windows, it’s highly unlikely that they would be able to recruit two of these talents—let alone all three. Even one marquee purchase will almost certainly have to be balanced by a major departure.

However, if Arsenal are to return to the Champions League final again—or play a brand of soccer which doesn’t inspire so much criticism—they will need to invest in more technically-gifted attacking talent.

How Arsenal Could Line Up With Julian Alvarez

(4-4-1-1): Saka, Rice, Lewis-Skelly, Trossard; Alvarez; Gyökeres.
(4-2-3-1): Rice, Lewis-Skelly; Saka, Ødegaard, Martinelli; Alvarez.
(4-3-3): Ødegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Alvarez.

The delivery driver who coached Alvarez as a child did an excellent job. The wriggly ball of energy was an instant hit at Manchester City and scored at least 20 goals in each of his two seasons at Atlético Madrid. Part of Alvarez’s appeal is that he has been reliably prolific in a wide array of positions.

Capable of drifting in from the left wing, working in tandem with more of a fixed striker or leading the line himself, Alvarez boasts a formidable repertoire. The years he’s spent with Atlético Madrid have also forced the World Cup winner to be self-sufficient, forging many of his own chances through sheer force of will. Arsenal, contrary to popular belief, do have some creative competency, but Alvarez would help with chance creation if Martin Ødegaard, Bukayo Saka and Eberechi Eze struggle with injuries again next season.

This would be a dream deal for the Gunners—and a difficult one. Alvarez is expected to command a fee in the region of $160 million and has already attracted sustained interest from Barcelona. However, the Catalan club’s ham-fisted approach, which has only served to infuriate Atlético, could actually help Arsenal in negotiations.

How Arsenal Could Line Up With Junior Kroupi

Eli Junior Kroupi — Junior Kroupi hit double digits for Premier League goals in his debut season. | Catherine Ivill/AMA/Getty Images

(4-4-1-1): Saka, Rice, Lewis-Skelly, Trossard; Kroupi; Gyökeres.
(4-2-3-1): Rice, Lewis-Skelly; Saka, Ødegaard, Martinelli; Kroupi.
(4-3-3): Ødegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Kroupi.

Much like Alvarez, Kroupi is a sparky second striker who can operate across the frontline. Andoni Iraola even began trusting the French 19-year-old with a midfield role by the end of a record-breaking individual campaign.

As well as the most goals of a teenage debutant in Premier League history, Kroupi also boasted a prodigious work rate haring around at the sharp end of Iraola’s high-pressing Bournemouth side. The case of Kroupi is a question of how lucky are Arsenal feeling?

The smiley striker nabbed 13 goals from an expected goal (xG) tally of 8.4—only Antoine Semenyo out-performed his xG by a larger margin in the Premier League last season, per Opta. Very few players ever consistently outscore their xG across multiple years, which is why it often proves to be more useful to look at the quality of chances a player can accrue.

Kroupi averaged an xG of 0.36 per 90 minutes last term—so he’d be expected to score roughly once every three games—which isn’t anything to sniff out for a 19-year-old, but is far less impressive than his raw goal tally. For comparison, Tottenham Hotspur’s Richarlison and Chelsea outcast Liam Delap both recorded comparative xG figures last term. Would Arsenal pay more than $100 million for either of those players?

How Arsenal Could Line Up With Morgan Rogers

(4-2-3-1): Rice, Lewis-Skelly; Saka, Rogers, Trossard; Havertz.
(4-1-2-3): Rice; Eze, Rogers; Saka, Gyökeres, Martinelli.
(4-3-3): Ødegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Rogers.

“When you’re a midfielder, you’re a midfielder—not a No. 6, No. 8 or No. 10. If we want a total team, we’d better have total players to do that, to be comfortable and dominant in any area of the pitch, to dominate every phase of play.”
Mikel Arteta

Arteta’s vision of soccer in the future is a window to the past. Just like the Ajax and Netherlands teams from the 1970s, Arsenal’s manager expects the modern player to be able to operate in a range of positions during the same game. Declan Rice is on his way to mastering the middle of the pitch and Rogers is reportedly viewed as a potential partner for his compatriot.

The Aston Villa rover has endured a testing campaign. While it ended on the high of Champions League qualification and Europa League glory, Rogers suffered through significant patches of indifferent form, while his capacity to dribble past opponents has plummeted.

Nevertheless, the England international’s versatility is viewed as a key quality for the host of admirers he has at Arsenal. That admiration is thought to be mutual, with BBC Sport claiming that Rogers would be open to a move to the Emirates. Whether Ødegaard or Eze would be so keen on having another attacking midfielder to compete with is another matter.

How Arsenal Could Line Up With Alvarez, Kroupi and Rogers

Arsenal’s punchy XI. — If money and tactical structure was no object, Arsenal’s XI could look a lot more exciting. | FotMob

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