Arsenal's pursuit for a new striker is likely to come down to two clear options as Mikel Arteta begins to reshape his front line ahead of the 2022/23 season.
The Gunners need to add another forward as Alexandre Lacazette is out of contract this summer. Eddie Nketiah, whose deal also runs out at the end of June, is expected to sign a new long-term deal to keep him at the club until 2027. The 22-year-old would be Arsenal's only other senior striker at the club, however, following Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang's departure in January.
A number of attackers have been linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium, with Arteta keen to add at least one to his ranks as they fight on many fronts next term. The Gunners will participate in the Europa League after missing out on Champions League football on the final day, meaning they will play at least six more matches in the group stages of that competition.
They seem well-stocked in most areas of the pitch apart from up front and it is understood Arsenal's No.1 target is Manchester City's Gabriel Jesus. The Brazilian has worked with Arteta in the past and he has established himself as a proven Premier League goalscorer over the past few years.
Jesus has scored 95 goals in 236 games since making the big-money move from Palmeiras in 2017. He has helped City win four Premier League titles, one FA Cup and three Carabao Cups in that time.
His skillset and ability can hand Arteta a massive boost going into the season if he decides to join. Not only can the 25-year-old play in the central striker role, he can also operate on the right-hand side, giving Arteta flexibility if needs to switch his side up due to injuries or fatigue.
Another reason why this move is looking more and more likely is that Jesus is set to be knocked further down the pecking order when Erling Haaland joins City from Borussia Dortmund in July. Jesus' minutes have been limited throughout the majority of the campaign despite starting five of their last six league games and Haaland will only surely hamper his game time.
It has emerged that Alvaro Morata is also at the top of Arsenal's wish list, just behind Jesus. The Spaniard has spent the last two seasons out on loan at Juventus from Atletico Madrid, scoring just 20 times in 67 games.
However, the 29-year-old is now looking for a permanent home after struggling to hit the heights for Diego Simeone's side since his £58million switch from Chelsea in 2019. As per Sport, the Gunners are 'very close' to signing Morata for a fee in the region of £25million. Should this be the case then it would be his first return to the Premier League since his disastrous spell with the Blues.
Someone who missed out on joining the Gunners, though, is Dusan Vlahovic after he was told he made the "wrong" decision to join Juventus in January. Former Italy international and Real Madrid striker Antonio Cassano stated Vlahovic should not have snubbed Arsenal to make the switch to the Turin side.
He said: "In my opinion, [Vlahovic's decision] is sensationally wrong. For the type of player I think he is he needed to make an intermediate step to a team like Arsenal, Tottenham [Hotspur], or Sevilla, who signed [Anthony] Martial. For me, you know, he has always been a second-tier player."
For Vlahovic, the Arsenal ship has sailed but Gabriel Jesus and Alvaro Morato are now the two main options to fill the void set to be created at the Emirates this summer.
