Arsenal's 2024 striker summer transfer targets - ranked

Remember that time when the entire fanbase was on its knees, pleading the club to go out and sign a striker amid a barren run in front of goal. Those were the days.

Profligacy in the final third defined Arsenal's slump at the end of 2023, with many believing that their scoring woes would cripple the club's title challenge before it got started.

Such fears were valid, but the Gunners' recent run has quite literrally laughed in the face of those concerns. Drab showing in Porto notwithstanding, Arsenal have scored a whopping 26 goals (from ten different goalscorers) in their previous six Premier League outings.

However, no matter how the 2023/24 concludes for the Gunners - whether they remain prolific or not - the club are expected to sign their long-term #9 this summers. There are genuine concerns regarding Gabriel Jesus' knee, and should the club nail their striker acquisition, Arteta's project could be thrust into a new realm.

Arsenal will be relentlessly linked leading up to and during the summer transfer window. So, this ranking purely focuses on the four options that have reportedly been shortlisted by the club.

4. Joshua Zirkzee

I love Zirkzee and was an advocate of his signing in the January window after the links emerged.

The forward functions as the silky focal point for Thiago Motta's overachieving Bologna. The Rossublu could qualify for the Champions League next season, and Zirkzee has played a major part. He's scored nine Serie A goals and recorded three assists.

The young forward is finally realising his potential having left Bayern Munich amid a prevailing feeling of 'what could've been...'. Zirkzee has all the talent in the world and does slightly remind me of Ivan Toney, but I don't necessarily think he's the profile of forward Arsenal require. He'd be a fine systematic fit and is content working as a facilitator, but the Dutchman is not yet a killer in front of goal.

I'd be absolutely fine with Zirkzee arriving, but he's more of a project option compared to the alternatives. At this stage, Arsenal need the finished product.

3. Viktor Gyokeres

The former Coventry striker has taken to the brighter lights of Lisbon like a fish to water.

Gyokeres' stock has soared this season, with the forward scoring his 31st goal of the season in emphatic fashion against Benfica on Thursday night. He was the missing piece for Ruben Amorim's talented and technically gifted outfit, with Gyokeres particularly enjoying the creative brilliance of Pote and Marcus Edwards.

The Swede is a relentless channel runner and powerful mover, but he's not merely a bruiser. There's a refinement to Gyokeres' craft, and he's also capable of delivering the final pass, too. He has eight Primeira Liga assists to his name this season.

There's an Erling Haaland-ness about him when he latches onto balls in behind, but I would have reservations paying an astronomical fee for him. Is he tried and tested at the very highest level?

2. Ivan Toney

Toney certainly hasn't hidden his admiration for Arsenal, and there's no doubt he'd jump ship at the first opportunity this summer.

The striker has scored goals wherever he's been and has continued from where he left off after serving an eight-month ban for gambling breaches.

The Gunners are certainly in the Toney race, with the player's Premier League experience thrusting him higher up this ranking. Toney has so far thrived in a counter-attacking set-up at Brentford, but there's no reason to suggest he wouldn't thrive if asked to face up against low blocks for many weeks of the season.

Toney is a natural-born goalscorer who guarantees goals from the penalty spot, too. Arteta would love his ability to win aerial duels, but his work without the ball does need refinement.

Given his contract situation at Brentford, the Gunners might not have to pay a premium price.

1. Victor Osimhen

I'm not necessarily saying that Osimhen is THE one Arsenal should go after this summer, but he'd be my pick out of the four that have been mentioned.

I just love the Nigerian's game. Remarkably explosive, Osimhen can dominate in the air and in the channels. Once an inconsistent finisher when trying to work his way to prominence in Europe, Osimhen is now a ruthless goalscorer and was the winner of last season's Capocannoniere with 26 Serie A goals.

His athleticism renders him a cheat code for breaking the press, and with Arteta's side showing evolution towards a more direct style, Osimhen, like Gyokeres, would thrive. His off-the-ball movement is among the very best at his position and there are intricacies to his craft which suggest he'll have no problem scoring freely against tightly-packed defences - not to mention his aerial abilities.

The signs are pointing towards a Napoli exit this summer, but Arsenal will have to pay a monster fee in excess of £100m to secure his services. Chelsea are also in the running.

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