Damning stat shows why Arsenal must push for Viktor Gyokeres and Julian Alvarez swap deal

The prospect of a spectacular swap deal between Arsenal and Atletico Madrid, exchanging Viktor Gyokeres for Julian Alvarez, remains a genuine possibility this summer.

The Alvarez noise has murmured along in the background whilst the Gunners have pursued other targets, and doesn't seem to be going away. The discourse suggests that Atletico are outright refusing to grant the Argentine his dream move to Barcelona, but would be willing to sanction his exit if it's to Arsenal or somewhere else not in Spain.

While it would take an astronomical fee for the North Londoners to pry Alvarez to the Emirates, this could be offset somewhat by including a player in the deal.

The reliable HandOfArsenal reported earlier this summer that Atleti's interest in Gyokeres is real, opening up the potential of a stunning, box-office swap deal to materialise late in the window.

Arsenal have to push for Gyokeres-Alvarez swap deal - here's why

While on the surface Gyokeres produced a relatively productive season last year, netting 21 goals across all competitions, this masks some of the underlying issues with his performances.

Most notably, the Swede's return of 21 goals isn't quite as impressive when broken down in more detail. He scored 17 non-penalty goals, just two more than Kai Havertz had managed in 2024/25, before the German sustained a season-ending injury at the start of February. Havertz has consistently been lamented for not being prolific enough, but was on course for a more fruitful season than Gyokeres, who is heralded for his 'inevitable' goalscoring output, before his injury.

In the league, Gyokeres found the back of the net eleven times, excluding penalties. This puts him in the 73rd percentile for non-penalty goals per 90 - far from an elite goalscoring rate.

Even if he improves on that return next season, as he's now more acclimatised to the team, his goalscoring is unlikely to reach a level where his inclusion in the team is justified based on how little he offers elsewhere. Havertz adds more value to Arsenal in almost every other aspect of the game, while it's unclear whether the German is actually a less prolific goalscorer than his counterpart.

What cannot be denied is that Gyokeres is a dependable goalscorer against the Premier League's weaker teams. He netted eleven of his 14 league goals against the bottom half last term.

However, he's so limited in big games that this value in smaller games becomes less tolerable. Damning data reveals that Gyokeres registered no shots at all in 14 matches last season (via FBRef). These 14 matches included three against Manchester City, two against Liverpool and one against Chelsea.

Evidently, he's not good enough to lead the line for Arsenal against the very best teams the Premier League has to offer.

Having said all that, Gyokeres is more than capable of fulfilling a squad role for an elite team, providing Havertz with cover and competition throughout the season.

That said, when a team is looking to become the best in the world, they take the opportunity to upgrade when it presents itself. Alvarez would be an immense upgrade on Gyokeres, and thus, the Gunners should push forward with this deal if it's an option.

There are physical questions marks over the World Cup winner after last season's injury issues, but there are no doubts about his talent. Creative, a goal threat and a great presser, he has the potential to elevate Arsenal's attack significantly, alongside or without Havertz.

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