Viktor Gyokeres has been suggested as a potential makeweight amid Arsenal's interest in Julian Alvarez. The Gunners are among the clubs interested in the Argentina striker, who has made it clear he wants to quit Atletico Madrid.
Real Madrid and Barcelona are interested in the prolific frontman but Atleti are reluctant to do business with their La Liga rivals, meaning a move to the Premier League cannot be ruled out. English interest is led by Arsenal, just a year after they finally landed Gyokeres following a drawn-out transfer saga with Sporting CP.
The Swede helped Arsenal to the title with 14 league goals, a respectable but not prolific return. Gyokeres had his detractors for his alleged lack of influence outside the penalty area, prompting some to wonder whether he should be the Gunners' first-choice number nine long term.
According to talkSPORT, Arsenal have considered offering Gyokeres as part of a swap deal to land Alvarez. With that in mind, here's a round-up of his mixed first season at the Emirates…
Arteta's blunt warning
Mikel Arteta made it clear to Gyokeres that he must be able to handle a goal drought if he is to be a hit at Arsenal. Following an underwhelming opening few months, the Spanish insisted he could accept lean spells in front of goal, provided it didn't undermine his wider contribution to the side.
He said: "I told him before the first meeting, I said, 'The nine that I want is a nine that when he doesn't score for six or eight games, he can handle that. If not, you have to go somewhere else because the expectation is going to be there.'
"So, if you put on a nine shirt for Arsenal, you have to be able to say, 'OK, six games, if I don't score, I'm a different player? I start to act in a different way?' No, I want much more of the same of what he's doing."
"You see the history of the number nines. You're going to have moments like this. He brings so much to the team. He creates space and solutions to a lot of the players around him. And with the talent that we have in the team, I'm sure that everybody, him included, will benefit from that."
'Not trusted'
Gyokeres' cause wasn't helped by Paul Merson's mid-season claim that he wasn't "trusted" by his new team-mates. In February, during an appearance on Stick to Football, the Gunners legend suggested players were reluctant to give Gyokeres the ball.
He said: "I watch Gyokeres, Arsenal don't trust him, the players. They never pass to him, you watch him, next time he comes short they go 'no.'"
Merson added: "If you watch it, you'd be surprised, then when [Gabriel] Jesus comes on, they keep on giving it him all the time. That's what I see when I watch the game.
"He [Gyokeres] comes short and they never give him it. He makes some good runs as well. He's low [on confidence] at the moment but I don't think they trust him at all."
Training ground behaviour
However, comments from Gunners defender Cristhian Mosquera indicated that he is highly rated by his team-mates. Following his slow start to the season, Cristhian Mosquera jumped to his defence, calling him an "animal" in training.
The Spanish defender told AS: "Gyokeres is a beast, an animal. Training with him helps defenders improve. There were great players at [former club] Valencia, but training with such high-level players is a huge leap forward."
