Arsenal attempted to sign former Chelsea man in last-gasp deal with Arteta ‘beaten to punch’
Alvaro Morata was linked with a move to Arsenal.
Arsenal missed out on the signing of former Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata before the transfer deadline as he moved to Galatasaray instead, according to reports.
The Gunners romped to an impressive 5-1 win over defending Premier League champions Manchester City on Sundaywith goals from Martin Odegaard, Thomas Partey, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Kai Havertz and Ethan Nwaneri.
That result saw Arsenal keep the gap to Premier League leaders Liverpool at six points with Arne Slot’s side having a game in hand on the Gunners.
It will be tough for Arsenal to hunt down the Reds now but a new forward on deadline day would’ve helped Arteta between now and the end of the season.
Bayern Munich’s Mathys Tel was one name who was linked with a late move but he eventually moved to Tottenham on loan until the end of the campaign.
Arsenal also looked into transfers for RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko and Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak but both deals were understood to be unrealistic in the winter.
The main striker they made a move for towards the end of the window was Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins but, with the Villans selling Jhon Duran to Al-Nassr, that also proved impossible.
And now The Athletic have revealed that former Chelsea forward Morata was another player they attempted to sign with the AC Milan star coming up in conversations with the representatives of Espanyol goalkeeper Joan Garcia.
Arsenal were eventually ‘beaten to the punch’ by Turkish giants Galatasaray, who secured a loan deal until the end of the season for the Spain international.
The report in The Athletic added:
‘In the same meeting, Arsenal expressed an interest in another of the representatives’ clients: Alvaro Morata. They were interested in a loan deal for AC Milan’s 32-year-old striker. The indications were that Milan would have been prepared to sanction such a deal, but Arsenal were beaten to the punch by Galatasaray. The Turkish team were emphatic that they wanted Morata and wanted him now — Arsenal did not have the same conviction, and wanted a moment to take stock.
‘Outside of Watkins and Morata, there were not many available forwards in the market who piqued Arteta’s interest. Arsenal have previously admired Evan Ferguson, but were not able to take him on loan having already signed Raheem Sterling and Neto on temporary deals. His signing would also have been a gamble of its own, given his struggles for form and fitness.’
