Arsenal have ‘growing interest’ in £80m striker deal after Man Utd defeat as three-man transfer list revealed

Arsenal have reportedly stepped up their ‘interest’ in a highly-rated forward following their penalty shootout defeat against Manchester United in the FA Cup third round on Sunday. Mikel Arteta’s side were dumped out of the cup by United despite playing for most of the second half and all of extra time with a man advantage after Diogo Dalot was sent off on 61 minutes.

And to add to the negative feeling surrounding the club, forward Gabriel Jesus was withdrawn 40 minutes in after suffering a knee injury which led to him being stretchered off on Sunday. The Standard reports that he will now undergo knee scans to determine the severity of his injury. Big worry, that’s my feeling,” Arteta said following the game.

“He [Gabriel Jesus] had to come off on a stretcher with a lot of pain, touching his knee. It’s not looking good.” His injury is the latest in a string of high-profile omissions this season. Captain Martin Odegaard missed almost two months after sustaining an ankle injury in early September.

Bukayo Saka also suffered an injury during the 5-1 win against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in December, he is expected to be out for “more than two months”.Saka, 23, is Arsenal’s joint-second-highest goalscorer this season alongside Gabriel Martinelli with five goals each.

Just Kai Havertz – with seven strikes – has more but has come under fire for his poor finishing after missing several chances against United.

Arsenal has lacked quality in front of goal this season and this may tempt Arsenal to sign a forward in the January transfer window.Arteta “loves” Athletic Club’s Nico Williams but his wage demands are expected to be too high.

However, Arsenal have “growing interest” in Sporting CP marksman Viktor Gyokeres, who would require a bid of £80m from the club to see him leave Portugal in January, an amount “they would rather” spend in the summer according to the Independent.

Of course, Gyokeres, 26, is one of the most in-form strikers in Europe having netted 32 times in just 30 appearances this season. He has also been linked with a move to United, as he previously worked with Ruben Amorim during his successful spell at Sporting. Another option for Arsenal is RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko, who has scored 12 goals in 24 games for the German side this term.

Sesko, 21, was heavily linked with a move to north London in the summer of 2024 but he was “reluctant” to join the club due to concerns he would be second-choice to Havertz, according to the Mail.The Slovenia international reportedly has a buy-out clause of £55m in his contract which is set to run until the summer of 2029.

Mikel Arteta set to axe three Arsenal players in ruthless cull as bombshell Alexander Isak transfer claim made Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta will reportedly cut three people from the club amid links to Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak.

Over the past couple of transfer windows, Arsenal have been linked with several of the world’s best strikers as the London club hopes to strengthen the centre of their attack.

Recently, rumours have suggested that the Gunners could make a move for in-form Newcastle United striker Isak, who has established himself as one of the best attacked in the Premier League. But now, a new reports has revealed a massive update about Arsenal’s interest in Isak, while confirming that Arteta plans to let three key players leave the club in the coming months.

According to The Daily Mail, it is now highly unlikely that Arsenal will be able to produce the amount of money needed to convince Newcastle to part ways with their star players, with the report claiming that a British-record transfer fee would be required.

Unfortunately for Arsenal fans, it is reported that owner Stan Kroenke is therefore extremely unlikely to agree to for the 25-year-old striker. And, although the Gunners are currently complying with Profit and Sustainability Rules, such a move for Isak could threaten to change this, leading to club officials reportedly playing down rumours of the move, despite a clear interest from Arteta.

Instead, the Spanish manager will turn his focus towards outgoings in the next two transfer windows, with three names on top of Arteta’s departure list. Despite his recent improvement in form, Arsenal will reportedly listen to offers for striker Gabriel Jesus at the end of the season

The Brazilian has scored an impressive six goals in his past four appearances for Arsenal in all competitions, but is viewed as surplus to requirements due to his lack of consistency.Midfielder Thomas Partey is also expected to leave at the end of the season, with the club reportedly not interested in extending his current £150,000-a-week contract ahead of its expiry in June.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian defender Oleksandr Zinchenko could be set to leave Arsenal in the January transfer window after losing his place in Arteta’s starting lineup.

Man Utd and Arsenal to face FA investigation as ‘points deduction’ incident raised Manchester United and Arsenal will face an FA investigation after their FA Cup third round clash, it has been claimed.United won the tie on penalties at the Emirates Stadium following a 1-1 draw after extra time.

Bruno Fernandes had put the visitors ahead on 52 minutes with a curling effort into the right corner, before Arsenal were then awarded a penalty for a contentious foul by Harry Maguire on Kai Havertz.

Altay Bayindir saved Martin Odegaard’s spot kick with a superb diving save low to his left, but the Gunners would equalise on 63 minutes through Gabriel Magalhaes.

United were already down to 10 men at that stage after Diogo Dalot was shown a second yellow card, and they held out for a draw before winning the penalty shootout, with Bayindir’s stop to deny Havertz in the shootout proving to be the decisive moment. Now, former Premier League referee Keith Hackett has said that both clubs will be subject to an investigation by the FA due to a mass confrontation during the match.

The incident occurred after United midfielder Manuel Ugarte appeared to headbutt Kai Havertz, before he himself was pushed to the ground by Mikel Merino. There was another confrontation between a group of players several yards away.

And speaking to Football Insider, Hackett says that the brawl will result in an FA investigation – comparing it to an incident he was involved in that resulted in both clubs receiving a points deduction. That would not happen in this case, of course, as the fixture was played in the FA Cup – and the brawl appears to be far less serious.

He said: “The mass confrontation will be the subject of an investigation,” he stated.Years ago, I was in the middle of a mass confrontation involving what was a 21-man brawl. I decided not to red card anyone on the basis I might have had more than a handful walking in the direction of the tunnel.

“I submitted a detailed report to the FA, who investigated and both teams were deducted points. I have no doubt that both teams [this time] will be charged for failing to control their players.”Should a team be charged with failing to control their players, the punishment is usually a fine

Arsenal have accepted several charges and fines in recent years, while, as an indication of a more severe punishment that both sides could receive, United were fined £82,000 for failing to control players during fixtures against Newcastle and Chelsea in 2022.

Why Arsenal and Man Utd will not be wearing red for their FA Cup third round clashNeither Arsenal nor Manchester United will wear a red kit during their FA Cup third round tie at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

The Premier League clubs will go head-to-head for a place in the fourth round of the historic cup competition. The Gunners are the record winners with 14 crowns.While United, who have won the cup 13 times, will be looking to retain their title having won last season’s edition of the competition with a 2-1 victory against Manchester City back in May 2024.

But something unusual will happen during Sunday’s match.Usually, when Manchester United and Arsenal face each other the home side wears their red home shirt.However, on Sunday, United will sport their blue away kit.

While the Gunners are set to don an all-white kit in support of the anti-knife crime initiative ‘No More Red’ which helps fight knife crime and youth violence on the streets of London.The murder of a 16-year-old Arsenal fan, Ben Kinsella, in 2008 led to the creation of the campaign, which now partners with both the football club and shirt sponsor Adidas.

Tomorrow’s fixture will be the fourth time Arsenal’s men’s side have worn the all-white shirts.The north London-based side have won just once while wearing the kit, against Oxford United in the FA Cup in 2023.

While, they lost against Liverpool in 2024 and Nottingham Forest in 2022.The message that those involved hope to resonate with youngsters is that no more blood should be shed as a result of knife crime.

18-year-old Arsenal youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly gave his thoughts on the campaign.

“It’s just so important that we start to advocate,” he told Sky News.Arsenal live by their principles to help people and help people grow, help people stay together. And just this campaign, we really help people out.”