Arsenal looking to sign €65m striker before January window slams shut

Posted Wednesday, January 27, 2016 by allarsenal.com

Things have been a little quiet on the transfer front where Arsenal are concerned, but recent links to Juventus striker Alvaro Morata (via talkSPORT) suggest Arsene Wenger may still have one trick up his sleeve.

Reports suggest the Frenchman is plotting a record breaking bid for the Serie A striker, and is hoping to get a deal done before the January transfer window slams shut.

The Metro claims Juventus aren’t keen on selling, but if we match their €65m (£49.6m) valuation they will let the former Real Madrid striker leave.

The 23-year-old was one of the most sought after forwards in the world last summer, and after an excellent season in Italy a huge number of clubs were linked with a move for the Spanish international. He’s been far less impressive this season though, and after netting 15 goals last season he’s managed just three so far in 2015/16.

While Morata is unquestionably one of the brightest young strikers around, his poor form makes the move a questionable one. It’s common knowledge that Arsene Wenger is only looking for players of the highest calibre, but would he be willing to break the club transfer record for a player in such poor form?

He’s made 19 appearances in Serie A this season, although 11 of those were cameo roles off the bench. He’s scored just once – while assisting twice – in those 19 games, with his other two goals coming in the Champions League.

Morata has been battling with new signing Paulo Dybala for a place in the side, and understandably has been missing out due to the form of the Argentine. Dybala has made just one appearance more than Morata in Serie A, although just four of his games have been from the bench – playing roughly twice the minutes of his teammate. He’s scored 12 goals and assisted seven times in the league though, a far, far more impressive return.

If Morata continues to struggle then he may well keep finding regular football hard to come by, and looking for a way out wouldn’t seem totally far fetched. It’s hard to see us meeting Juventus’ valuation though, so for the moment this one seems like a non-starter.

As a side note, the Metro claim Tottenham are also interested, but would he even join them? We can’t see it.