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And to add to the negative feeling surrounding the club, forward Gabriel Jesus was withdrawn 40 minutes in after suffering a knee injury which led to him being stretchered off on Sunday.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 (Credit:Getty)

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.