Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal – irrespective of whether they are crowned champions or not – will enter the summer transfer window with positions to strengthen. Their pursuit of a young Inter Milan ace, however, has been met with a stumbling block.
As things stand, the Gunners looked poised to lift the Premier League title come the end of term. They are sat four points ahead of second-placed Manchester City with 12 matches to go.
There are worries, of course, given they’ve let such a hefty points gap slip in the latter end of previous campaign.
This season feels different, though, given Liverpool are a shadow of their title-winning selves and Pep Guardiola’s City have not been at the races from start to finish. But that doesn’t mean the Gunners aren’t looking to reinforce their ranks in the summer of 2026.
Arsenal suffer transfer blow in pursuit of young striker
Arsenal enjoyed a decent summer of 2025. Ex-Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi has performed well in the centre of the park alongside the ever-reliable Declan Rice and Piero Hincapie has performed well at the back when relied upon.
On the other end of the spectrum, Viktor Gyokeres hasn’t hit the ground running like many would have expected and Eberechi Eze’s start to life in north London has not been smooth.
Gyokeres’ struggles, combined with the fact that Gabriel Jesus could leave in the summer, means that a move for Pio Esposito makes sense.
Mooted by a number of top clubs in Europe because of how well he’s fared in senior football, Esposito has all the makings of a seasoned target man – and he’s chalked up 12 goal contributions in all competitions.
According to L’Interista, though, the young centre-forward is currently being labelled as ‘untouchable’ by the powers that be at Inter.
The report also suggests that his head is not close to being turned by the interested in his goal-getting services. The 20-year-old – capped five times by the Italian national team – is ‘deeply grateful’ to Nerazzurri.
The reason why Pio Esposito hasn’t privately reacted with glee at Arsenal’s interest is because his connection to Inter, a club who have ‘nurtured’ him, has been described as ‘unbreakable’.
Esposito is the perfect striker for Arteta
It’s clear that Inter higher-ups view him as the long-term successor to Lautaro Martinez – and he’s not a player they are looking to cash in on for a swift profit.
For Arteta, though, he would offer a genuine threat in the box during set-pieces, which is something Arsenal have perfected over the years.
His goalscoring record, too, having chalked up three goals in his five caps for Italy, proves that he is capable of performing on the big stage. With Arsenal pushing for trophies, that is a key reason behind their interest.
Esposito also possesses plenty of flair with the ball at his feet, which allows him to drop deep and link play among teammates.
Arsenal’s striker options – is a move Esposito wise?
Signed in the summer from Sporting CP after taking the Portuguese top flight by storm with his freakish nature in front of goal, Gyokeres is Arteta’s go-to choice in the centre-forward berth.
The aforementioned Jesus, though, is pushing to start and Kai Havertz – who is currently nursing an injury – can also ply his trade through the middle.
| Competition | Matches | Minutes | Goals | Assists |
| Serie A | 23 | 834 | 4 | 4 |
| Champions League | 7 | 352 | 1 | 2 |
| Italy Cup | 2 | 113 | 1 | 0 |
If the Gunners were to get their hands on a striker of Pio Esposito’s stature and calibre, it would certainly be wise but whether Inter’s issue of a ‘hands-off’ warning wanes their pursuit remains to be seen.
