Barcelona have hardly been quiet in the transfer market this summer, even as the closing days of the window bring their most pressing business into focus.
Hansi Flick’s side have already completed a €60million deal for Manchester City’s Rodri, the reigning Ballon d’Or winner, strengthening a key area of the pitch in the process.
What Barcelona still lack, however, is a recognised number nine, a gap left by Robert Lewandowski’s free departure and widened further by Ferran Torres’ recent €50million move to Paris Saint-Germain.
Julian Alvarez had long been viewed as the club’s priority target to fill that void, with Flick personally pushing for a deal.
Atletico Madrid, though, have consistently refused to negotiate with a direct La Liga rival, pointing instead to the Argentine’s reported €500million release clause as their price.
With that pursuit now considered dead, Barcelona have turned their attention to Arsenal striker Viktor Gyokeres as their new priority target up front.
According to Victor Navarro via X, the Swedish international is offering himself daily to Barcelona as he pushes for a move to Catalonia.
It’s a stance that comes after a mixed first season in England, one that delivered a Premier League title but also plenty of frustration for the 28-year-old.
Viktor Gyokeres joined Arsenal for a club-record fee of £54.8million last summer following a prolific spell at Sporting CP, where he scored 97 goals in just 102 appearances.
His debut campaign yielded 21 goals in 55 appearances across all competitions, finishing as Arsenal’s top scorer, though only 14 of those came in the Premier League from 36 matches.
Despite the numbers, he found himself increasingly overlooked for Arsenal’s biggest fixtures as the season wore on, with Kai Havertz emerging as Mikel Arteta’s preferred option in several high-profile matches.
That trend continued into pre-season, with Gyokeres restricted to just the final 15 minutes of Arsenal’s Community Shield win over Manchester City.
Barcelona had shown interest in Gyokeres previously, before he chose Arsenal over a move to Catalonia last summer, with sporting director Deco having since praised the striker publicly despite insisting at the time that Barcelona weren’t in the market for a forward.
That stance has clearly shifted, with Barcelona now understood to be exploring a move in earnest, even if formal contact with Arsenal is yet to be made.
‼️ Lautaro Martínez pasa a ser, con el consenso de todo el club, la opción número 1 para el Barça
❌ Ayer el club volvió a recibir la información de que Gil Marín veta a Julián Álvarez
➕Gyokeres se está ofreciendo al Barça a diario
➕Tresoldi gusta mucho mucho en el FCB
— Víctor Navarro (@victor_nahe) August 19, 2026
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