Barcelona's Striker Hunt Stalls as Gyokeres Links Cool
Barcelona have accelerated through the transfer window over the past 24 hours, but the search for a new No. 9 remains stuck in neutral.
The Catalan club are closing in on two heavyweight arrivals. Joao Cancelo has agreed to terminate his contract with Al Hilal and is expected to fly to Barcelona next week to complete a free transfer. Even bigger, Barça have reached an agreement with Manchester City for the signing of Rodri, a deal that would reshape Hansi Flick’s midfield from day one.
Two major problems solved. One glaring issue still wide open.
No movement on Gyokeres – yet
With Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres gone, Barcelona’s need for a centre-forward has become one of the defining stories of the final weeks of the window. Naturally, names have started to swirl.
Viktor Gyokeres, Arsenal’s No. 9, has been floated as a possible alternative after talks for Julian Alvarez hit a wall. On paper, the Swede fits the brief: powerful, hard-working, and experienced at the top level.
But the reality is colder.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Arsenal have not received a single phone call from Barcelona about Gyokeres. No direct contact. No club-to-club talks. No proposal. Early suggestions of an active pursuit are ahead of themselves, with sporting director Deco yet to open formal negotiations or even test the waters on a potential deal.
Any move would be expensive. Arsenal hold the leverage and have little reason to make their starting striker easily available, especially to a club that would be negotiating from a position of need. For Barcelona, already committing heavily to Rodri and Cancelo, another big-money operation would require serious calculation.
For now, Gyokeres is a name on a list, not a live negotiation.
Flick’s No. 9 problem
Inside the dressing room, the gap is obvious.
Lewandowski’s exit removed the reference point in attack. Ferran Torres’ departure stripped away another option through the middle. Flick, who prefers structure and clarity in his attacking patterns, currently has no established senior natural No. 9.
Hamza Abdelkarim is the most orthodox centre-forward available, but he is still at the beginning of his top-level journey. Flick can shuffle the deck and use Lamine Yamal, Anthony Gordon or Karim Adeyemi in central roles, but each of them is more naturally suited to working from wide areas or between the lines rather than leading the line with back to goal.
The coach and Deco remain admirers of Julian Alvarez. The Manchester City forward is the profile they like most: mobile, intense, capable of pressing and finishing. Yet Atletico Madrid’s stance has made that path almost impassable. The Spanish club are refusing to negotiate, turning what might have been a marquee solution into a near-impossible puzzle.
If that situation doesn’t change, Gyokeres could move from theoretical option to serious target very quickly.
A potential domino waiting to fall
Should Barcelona finally decide to step toward Gyokeres, the move would not happen in isolation. It has the makings of a classic late-window chain reaction.
Gyokeres did not enjoy a standout first season in England and appears to sit behind Kai Havertz in Mikel Arteta’s attacking hierarchy heading into the new campaign. That reality makes his situation one to watch, even if Arsenal are under no pressure to sell.
The London club themselves have been linked with a push for Julian Alvarez. Atletico Madrid, so reluctant to deal with Barcelona over the Argentine, might look more kindly on selling him to Arsenal, a continental rival rather than a direct domestic one.
If that door opens, another one swings with it. Alvarez to Arsenal could free Atletico to chase a new striker of their own. Victor Osimhen, currently at Galatasaray, has been mentioned as a forward who fits Diego Simeone’s system: powerful in transition, aggressive in the box, and relentless without the ball.
In that scenario, one Barcelona decision on Gyokeres could help set off a house-of-cards effect across Europe’s elite. A No. 9 moves in London, another in Madrid, another in Istanbul – all because Flick’s Barça finally choose their man.
For now, though, the situation is frozen. Cancelo is packing his bags. Rodri is on his way. The squad is taking shape.
And the biggest question of Barcelona’s summer still hangs over the penalty spot: who will wear the No. 9 when the season kicks off?
