Arsenal leads £85m for striker battle, Berta focuses on first signing

Arsenal football director Andrea Berta arrived to watch the Premier League match

According to Portugal, Arsenal is in the lead in the competition for Manchester United-related Sporting Lisbon striker Victor Giokelez. The Gunners are looking to have a great summer under new football director Andrea Berta, who replaced Edu Gaspar earlier this year.

A new striker is reportedly the top target for Berta, while Sporting Lisbon forward Giokelez is considered the top choice on his roster.

While Giokelez's Swedish teammate Alexander Isak remains Mikel Arteta's dream target, Newcastle's asking price for the striker is expected to be well above £100 million.

If the Magpies fail to advance to the Champions League, they may be forced to sell their core players, but their asking price may still be too high for Arsenal.

Despite his lack of Premier League experience, Giocres has performed well for Coventry City in the Championship and has a very good record with Sporting Lisbon.

The 26-year-old scored 67 goals in 63 Portuguese league games and became the top scorer in Europe in 2024 (in the Big Ten).

As his goal record shows, Geocarez is at the top again this year. He has scored 25 goals so far, tied for top spot with Paris Saint-Germain forward Ottoman Dembele, who scored this week in the Champions League against Arsenal.

Giocres is tight-lipped about his future, and last month he said "no one can predict what will happen."

When asked if he likes London, he replied, "I like Lisbon."

When asked if there is a gentleman agreement to leave Sporting Lisbon this summer, Giocres added, "I can't say anything about it."

"No one can predict what will happen, we enjoy the moment."

Summer transfer now seems inevitable, and Portuguese newspaper A Bola (via Sport Witness) reports that the Gunners are currently the leader.

reported that Arsenal is "planning a grand summer transfer window" under the leadership of Berta, who is a "loyal fan" of Giokelez and "expressed great interest" in the striker.

In fact, the Champions League semi-final team has already led Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United in the transfer battle.

Sports Lisbon still insists that the Swedish international will not leave with a severance of less than €100 million (£85 million) and Arsenal seems unlikely to pay the fee.

Ferdinand praised Manchester United's game against Bilbao as an "important moment of the season"

Weight loss, make friends, and play football: Why not try "men fighting obesity"? The Premier League prize gap is as high as £22.5 million, Manchester United will face Manchester United coach Ruben Amorin (who once coached Giocres in Lisbon) this week and the Red Devils are interested in him.

Amorin said: "I haven't talked to him. But if a player comes to Manchester United just to play the Champions League, he won't come."

"What we want is players who are willing to represent Manchester United, not players who just want to participate in certain games."