Arsenal remain interested in a deal to bring Dusan Vlahovic to The Emirates in the January transfer window.
That’s according to a report by 90min, who claim that, after missing out on a £70m move for the centre-forward to Juventus back in January, Mikel Arteta would be happy to offer the 22-year-old a route out of the debt-ridden Serie A side this winter.
However, the report goes on to state that, despite reports in Italy suggesting that the Serbia international could be looking for a route out of the Allianz Stadium, sources close to the player have now revealed that this is not currently the case.
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As cited by 90min, a source said: “He is not moving, he is playing well himself and he is fully focused on his game. He has been with Juventus for less than 12 months and is not looking to move.”
“More complete than Haaland”
While it very much appears as if Vlahovic himself is not overly open to a January move away from Italy, considering Juve’s recently revealed financial difficulties, should Arsenal present the Bianconeri with an offer they simply cannot afford to refuse, there would still appear a chance of the Gunners getting a deal over the line for the 22-year-old this winter.
And, considering the extraordinary returns Vlahovic has produced over his five seasons in Italy, should the opportunity arise, it would seem extremely advisable for Arteta and Edu to do everything in their power to bring the Serbian sensation to north London when the winter window opens in January.
Indeed, over his 108 appearances during a three-and-a-half-year spell at AFC Fiorentina, the £89m-rated hitman scored an incredible 49 goals and registered a further eight assists – averaging a direct goal contribution every 124 minutes of football played for the Viola.
It has been a similar story for the £224k-per-week talent over his six Serie A fixtures for Juventus this season, with the 22-year-old having already bagged four goals, as well as taken an average of 3.5 shots – 1.2 of which have hit the target – and made 0.8 key passes per game.
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These metrics have seen the 15-cap international average a remarkable SofaScore match rating of 7.22, not only ranking him as Massimiliano Allegri’s best performer in the league but also as the joint 27th-best player in the Italian top flight as a whole so far in 2022/23.
As a result of his phenomenal goalscoring returns, Vlahovic has quite understandably drawn a considerable amount of praise, with the Serbian FA president, Nenad Bjekovic, going as far as to claim that the 22-year-old is a better striker than Manchester City goal-machine Erling Haaland.
In comments cited by GOAL back in July, Bjekovic said: “Vlahovic is better and more complete than Haaland. The Norwegian has devastating power, but Dusan is not inferior: there is also very little difference in their height.
“But the Juventus forward’s variety and style of play is better. Manchester City and Juventus paid more or less the same fee, including commissions, to sign the two this year from Borussia Dortmund and Fiorentina.”
As such, should Arsenal be successful in a potential move for the player who Giorgio Chiellini dubbed “unbelievable” this winter, Arteta could well have unearthed his very own Haaland-esque talent at The Emirates – something that is sure to be an incredibly tantalising prospect for the Spaniard and supporters of the Gunners alike.
