Don't Miss

Arsenal keen on signing Bologna star Joshua Zirkzee

By Ritayan Chatterjee on January 23, 2024

Arsenal are reportedly keen on signing Bologna star Joshua Zirkzee, as per the Italian outlet TUTTOmercatoWEB.

The Gunners have seemingly been exploring the market to sign a new striker as they have been linked with numerous options. Ivan Toney and Victor Osimhen have been mentioned as the primary targets for Mikel Arteta’s side.

However, it has been suggested that Arsenal would need to spend over £100m to lure either Osimhen or Toney to the Emirates Stadium this year.

So, it won’t be easy for the North London club to purchase either of their key striker options and therefore, it seems they have started to explore alternative options with Zirkzee now emerging as a serious target.

According to the report by TUTTOmercatoWEB, Arsenal are keen on signing a new centre-forward and Zirkzee is ‘one of the first names’ on their wish-list. So, the North London club could make a concrete approach to purchase the Dutchman.

Zirkzee to Arsenal

The report further claims that Zirkzee has a £34m exit clause included in his current contract so the Bologna star would certainly be an affordable option for Arsenal to reinforce their frontline.

However, TUTTOmercatoWEB states that Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa have also been showing a firm interest in signing Zirkzee and in addition, AC Milan are plotting a swoop for him as well. So, Arsenal are likely to face stiff competition from their rivals in getting any potential deal done for the 22-year-old.

After enjoying a stellar start to this season, Arsenal struggled to showcase their best in recent weeks before returning to winning ways last time out against Crystal Palace.

The Gunners are currently third in the table with 43 points from 21 games, sitting only five points behind the league leader Liverpool. So, Arteta’s side are currently firmly in the title race.

However, it has been suggested that Arsenal may struggle to win the Premier League title by beating the Merseyside club and Manchester City in this race as they lack qualities in the centre-forward position. So, they need to sign a new prolific striker to bridge the gap with the Citizens and Liverpool.

However, Zirkzee hasn’t had much experience playing at the highest level so there is doubt whether he would be the right man for the North London club. Therefore, I think Arsenal would be better off going all-out to sign Toney or Osimhen over Zirkzee to reinforce their frontline.