Arsenal's Aggressive Rebuild: Alvarez Pursuit and Havertz's Rise
Arsenal have just smashed Coventry 3-0 on opening night, but the noise around the Emirates isn’t about the scoreline. It’s about what comes next.
Mikel Arteta and the hierarchy are deep into one of the most aggressive, calculated rebuilds of his tenure. The squad looks stronger, older in key areas, and more ruthless. Yet the search for a headline striker and clarity over some big names refuses to die down.
Alvarez obsession won’t go away
Julian Álvarez sits right at the heart of it.
Arsenal have been pushing for the Atlético Madrid forward all summer, and the interest hasn’t cooled. The club see him as the missing piece: a world-class No 9 to turn a title-chasing side into serial winners.
The problem? He wants Barcelona.
Reports in Spain insist Álvarez has been clear with his preference, and that message has not changed despite Mikel Arteta’s long-standing contact with the player. Atlético, though, are far more open to selling him abroad than to a direct La Liga rival. A move to the Premier League would be acceptable. A move to Barcelona, from their perspective, is not.
Diego Simeone tried to put a lid on the speculation before Atlético’s next game. “Julián Álvarez will be in the squad tomorrow,” he said. “For me, Julián is an extremely important player for us to achieve our objectives. As long as he’s with the team, I’m going to look after him.”
Behind that public line, Atlético have held talks with Arsenal to discuss what a deal might look like. For now, the fee is considered too high and the player’s stance is the major obstacle. Arsenal, though, are not walking away. They are waiting to see whether Barcelona can actually make their move – and whether the landscape shifts if Atlético progress with their own striker plans.
One subplot could help Arsenal. Atlético are battling Aston Villa to bring in Nicolas Jackson from Chelsea on loan, with director of football Mateu Alemany travelling to London to negotiate. If Jackson arrives and Barcelona turn to other targets, the path to Álvarez becomes less congested. Arsenal know it. They’re ready if the door opens even a fraction.
Havertz makes his own case
While the club chase Álvarez, Kai Havertz is making a compelling argument that the solution might already be in-house.
The German has carried his late-season surge into the new campaign. He scored in the Community Shield win over Manchester City, then again in the Champions League final against PSG, and followed that up with another goal against Coventry. These are not empty numbers; they’re big-game strikes in pressure moments, the type of contributions that once defined him at Chelsea when he hit the winner in the 2021 Champions League final.
Last season he shared the central role with Viktor Gyökeres. Now he looks ready to grab the job outright. His movement, link play and finishing have sharpened, and his performances are finally matching the £70m fee that raised eyebrows on arrival.
Pundits see the upside, but also the ceiling. Gary Neville argued that a striker like Álvarez, one who runs in behind relentlessly, would elevate Martin Ødegaard even further, suggesting that Havertz and Gyökeres “want to come to the play rather than run in behind.” For now, though, Havertz is doing everything he can to keep Arsenal’s striker hunt theoretical rather than urgent.
Frontline in flux: Martinelli squeezed, Tzolis explodes
While Havertz rises, others are living a very different reality.
Gabriel Martinelli, once a symbol of Arsenal’s new era, finds himself on the outside. He was left out of the squad entirely for the win over Coventry, after already turning down an approach from Galatasaray earlier in the summer. Inter Milan, Roma, Atlético Madrid and Juventus are all monitoring his situation, with Arsenal understood to be holding out for around €60m.
The way the situation is playing out has angered one of the club’s greatest forwards. Ian Wright told Sky Sports he feels “uncomfortable” with how Martinelli is being treated, saying the winger is “not being involved in the squad, not being spoken to, doesn’t know what’s going on.” Wright added that Martinelli “has done a lot in this squad to be treated more,” and admitted he feels “a bit sad for him.”
At the same time, the left flank has been refreshed. Leandro Trossard is gone, sold to Besiktas after an important spell that included the winner at West Ham last season in the title run-in. In his place, Christos Tzolis has arrived from Club Brugge for £34m and wasted no time justifying the outlay.
Tzolis delivered two assists in the Community Shield win over Manchester City and impressed again against Coventry. Sky’s co-commentator admitted the Player of the Match call was a “toss up” between Tzolis and Ødegaard before eventually going for the captain. Jamie Carragher went further, describing Tzolis as “an upgrade on Trossard and Martinelli.”
Neville pushed back slightly, insisting he still “really likes Martinelli,” while Wright again circled back to the Brazilian’s treatment. But the football is brutal: Tzolis, seven years younger than Trossard and already a dangerous outlet, looks like shrewd business and a clear statement that Arsenal’s left wing is evolving with or without Martinelli.
Yildiz chase: doors closed, doors ajar
That evolution might not be finished.
Arsenal have been circling Juventus forward Kenan Yildiz throughout the window as they look for another attacking option. The Turkish international, 21, scored 11 goals across all competitions last season and can operate across the frontline.
Reports have suggested Arsenal could even explore a swap deal involving Martinelli to bring Yildiz to Turin, killing two birds with one stone: refreshing the left wing and resolving a tense contract and playing-time situation.
But the picture is complicated. David Ornstein revealed on TNT Sport that Arsenal “like Kenan Yildiz, but the doors are closed from Juventus.” The Independent has also reported that Yildiz sits high on Arsenal’s list after they failed in their pursuit of Vinícius Júnior, who signed a new deal at Real Madrid. Juventus are thought to value Yildiz at around €70m, and at this stage are not keen to lose him.
So Arsenal keep watching. They admire the player, they’re weighing whether he’s worth that level of investment, and they know Martinelli’s future could yet be a lever in any negotiation.
Experience injected: Bruno and Konsa arrive
While the attacking jigsaw remains unsolved, the rest of the squad is starting to look ominously complete.
Arsenal have moved decisively to add proven Premier League quality in key areas. Bruno Guimarães has arrived to bolster midfield, fresh from captaining Newcastle to their first trophy in 56 years with the EFL Cup. At the back, Ezri Konsa has joined from Aston Villa in a £51m deal, with a further £4m in potential add-ons, after playing a central role in England’s World Cup campaign and Villa’s Europa League triumph that ended a 30-year wait.
Sporting director Andrea Betra was effusive in his assessment of Konsa, calling him “a defender of high quality” whose “athleticism, composure and tactical intelligence” have made him one of the Premier League’s most consistent performers. Betra highlighted Konsa’s ability to play both centrally and at right-back and stressed his “character and mentality” as key reasons Arsenal expect him to make an immediate impact.
Arteta, speaking to Sky Sports, framed the signings of Bruno and Konsa as part of a deliberate age-balance strategy. “We look at the squad as a whole, we have a young defensive line. In midfield, we already have the next generation with Ethan and Max. At 28 they are in their prime and I think they are going to give amazing things to our squad.”
The knock-on effect is obvious. With Konsa able to cover centrally and at right-back, questions now swirl around Ben White’s future. Everton admire the defender and are considering a move, sensing an opportunity for a player who may want more guaranteed minutes. White did register his first assist of the season against Coventry, but Arteta has at times struggled to rely on him consistently, and a sale could free up funds for one last major attacking move.
Zubimendi, exits and a wonderkid on the way
Not everyone is being eased towards the exit.
Martin Zubimendi, after a promising first season, has seen minutes squeezed by the arrival of Bruno, the resurgence of Ethan Nwaneri and the return of Declan Rice. Chelsea and Real Madrid have both been linked, but Arteta shut the door firmly when asked if Zubimendi could leave. “No, he’s a really important player,” he said, insisting that “without a doubt” the Spaniard was one of Arsenal’s best players last season and crucial to their late-season position.
Elsewhere, the club’s supposed “exit list” from May already looks dated. A CBS Sports report suggested as many as eight players – White, Gabriel Jesus, Nwaneri, Martinelli, Trossard, Havertz, Ødegaard and Cristhian Mosquera – could depart. Reality has moved on. Trossard has gone, but Havertz and Ødegaard both scored against Coventry, with the captain taking Player of the Match. Mosquera impressed alongside Gabriel in William Saliba’s absence. Nwaneri may seek more minutes, possibly via another loan, after last season’s spell at Marseille. Jesus and Martinelli still attract Serie A interest, but nothing is imminent.
One arrival is all but done. Arsenal are finally set to land 18-year-old Blackburn Rovers striker Igor Tyjon after several windows of pursuit. The Athletic report that he has completed his medical, with Blackburn to receive £1.2m up front, £2m in add-ons and a 20% sell-on clause. Tyjon has already featured for Blackburn’s Under-21s and England’s Under-17s, and made his senior debut in the EFL Cup last season. It’s a classic Arsenal play: a long-term striking project added beneath the headline acts.
Jesus, Gyökeres and the squeeze up front
Gabriel Jesus, once the centrepiece of Arteta’s attack, now sits at a crossroads.
Arsenal are open to replacing him and are expected to need sales to fund any major attacking arrival. Jesus has admirers in Serie A, and his departure would free up both salary and squad space in a frontline already reshaped by Havertz, Tzolis and the potential arrival of another forward.
Gyökeres, fresh from a strong World Cup, remains in the mix despite not featuring against Coventry. Arteta still sees him as a powerful option, but the sense is clear: no one in the attacking unit, apart from Ødegaard, is completely safe from rotation or from the transfer market.
Arteta himself summed up the club’s position bluntly before the Premier League opener. “We are trying to improve the team,” he said, “but it depends on some players leaving and the amount of money available to us after that. So far, I am very happy.”
Partey’s new chapter
Away from the current squad, one former cornerstone has moved again.
Thomas Partey, who left Arsenal for Villarreal last summer after his contract expired, has joined Al Shabab in Saudi Arabia. The Ghanaian made 167 appearances for Arsenal after arriving from Atlético Madrid in 2020 and became a key figure under Arteta. Now he takes his experience of the Premier League, Europe and international football to the Saudi Pro League for the next stage of his career.
The extra step
For all the movement, all the noise, one question hangs over this Arsenal project: what turns them from contenders into serial winners?
Neville believes the answer might be that one final, ruthless signing up front. “If Arsenal get Álvarez it would light this place up,” he said after the Coventry win. With “world-class defenders and midfielders,” he argued, a world-class striker would give them not only the tools to win the Premier League again, but to “go that extra step and win the Champions League as well.”
Ødegaard, who matched last season’s entire league goal tally with his strike against Coventry, sounded unfazed by the churn. “The quality in the squad and team is unbelievable,” he told Sky Sports. “You can put so many players in the squad and we would be at an unbelievably high level. We push each other to be better in training to be better.”
Arsenal have added experience in Bruno and Konsa. They’ve injected pace and end product with Tzolis. They’re nurturing Tyjon. They’re wrestling with the futures of Martinelli, Jesus and White. And they’re still knocking on Atlético’s door for Álvarez, even as the player dreams of Barcelona.
The squad is stronger. The ambition is clear. The window is ticking.
Will Arsenal land the striker who turns all of this into a dynasty, or will Havertz and the current cast force the club to admit the answer was already in red and white all along?
