A £165m splurge?! Arsenal eye Alexander Isak and Michael Olise in huge summer spree as Gunners prepare to hand Mikel Arteta a transfer war chest

• Arsenal to spend big this summer
• Gunners eye Newcastle striker Isak
• Palace winger Olise also a target

WHAT HAPPENED?

According to The Guardian, Newcastle striker Isak is one of the Gunners’ ‘primary targets’ but he would cost £100m ($124m), and Palace winger Olise has a £65m ($80.8m) price tag. The former has scored 21 goals in all competitions this season whereas the latter has found the net six times and bagged three assists in an injury-hit campaign. The Mirror adds that the north London side are also keeping tabs on Sporting Lisbon forward Viktor Gyokeres and RB Leipzig front man Benjamin Sesko, while Wolves wideman Pedro Neto and Athletic Bilbao’s Nico Williams are also on their radar.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

20240417 Mikel Arteta

These reports come after Arsenal were knocked out of the Champions League by Bayern Munich at the quarter-final stage on Wednesday and their 2-0 loss at home to Aston Villa last weekend put Manchester City in the driving seat to win the Premier League. The narrative after the loss, in some quarters, is that Mikel Arteta’s side are running out of steam, so strengthening the Gunners’ squad could be a wise move in their bid to lift silverware.

DID YOU KNOW?

Arsenal reportedly heavily scouted Isak when he was at Real Sociedad, but Newcastle captured his signature in 2022 for an initial £63 million. The Guardian add that Juventus’ Dusan Vlahovic is another alternative but they have cooled their interest in Brentford’s Ivan Toney.

WHAT NEXT?

Declan Rice Arsenal 2023-24

After their Champions League loss to Bayern, Arteta’s side travel to mid-table Wolves on Saturday, looking to keep their Premier League title chances alive, followed by a home clash with Chelsea next Tuesday.