Merson's £190m Blueprint for Arsenal's European Dominance
Arsenal have finally scaled the mountain. Now Paul Merson wants them to build something that can rule Europe.
Fresh from ending a 22-year wait for the Premier League title, Mikel Arteta’s side are being spoken about as the team to beat again next season. For Merson, though, the domestic crown is only part of the story. If Arsenal want to turn a great era into a defining one, he believes they need to go big – £190m big.
Merson’s £190m blueprint
On the Sports Agents podcast, Merson laid out a bold, almost ruthless plan: add two of the most dangerous attackers in Europe and dare anyone to stop them.
At the heart of it is Julian Alvarez. Rated at around €120m, the Atletico Madrid striker looks set to move this summer and has made Barcelona his preferred destination, according to TEAMtalk sources. That has not put Merson off. He sees the Argentine as the electric, pacey centre-forward Arsenal have lacked.
Alongside him in this imagined Arsenal front line is PSG’s Desire Doué. Merson wants both in a £190m double swoop, convinced that such an outlay would tilt the balance of power.
“I would like a Doué and an Alvarez, and if they got them, then wow – I dread to think who’s going to stop Arsenal!” he said. The message is clear: Arsenal are already strong, but the right two signings could make them terrifying.
From nearly perfect to truly elite
Arsenal’s season already sits in rare company. A first league title in over two decades, achieved after three seasons of near misses under Arteta, has transformed the mood in the red half of north London. They were deserved champions, consistent and relentless.
Yet the campaign could have entered club folklore on an even grander scale. The Champions League final slipped away against Paris Saint-Germain. The Carabao Cup final went the same way, another trophy lost on the line. Those fine margins still sting.
For Arteta and new sporting director Andrea Berta, those defeats sharpen the focus. The squad is strong, but not yet complete. The attack, in particular, is under scrutiny. Arsenal are tracking several left-sided wingers, and a marquee centre-forward remains high on the wish list.
Merson agrees. He sees a team that has the platform to dominate, but one that still needs more cutting edge.
“If they’d have held on, didn’t give away the penalty and won 1-0, we’d be sitting here now saying it’s a masterclass of all masterclasses,” he said of the Champions League final. The difference between glory and regret, in his eyes, is that extra burst of pace and ruthlessness up front.
“They’re screaming out for a centre forward with pace. I think if they can get a centre forward with pace, who’s electric, then I think they’ll dominate, and I think they’ve got every chance of the Champions League next year.”
The unthinkable question: Odegaard’s future
The problem with a £190m dream? Something has to give.
Merson believes Arsenal may have to consider a brutal decision involving one of their crown jewels. He floated the idea that captain Martin Odegaard could be the player sacrificed to fund a major rebuild.
“It’s madness for me to be saying this, but they probably will be thinking about that [selling Odegaard],” he admitted.
He does not doubt the Norwegian’s quality or appeal. Far from it. “I still think there’ll be teams queuing round the block for him… When you play in the position that Odegaard plays in, you’re screaming out for pace up front. You have to have pace.”
The logic is stark. Odegaard is a creator who thrives when runners fly beyond him. If Arsenal do not add that explosive striker, they risk wasting some of what he offers. If they do, he becomes even more central – or, in a harsher reading, he becomes the asset that allows them to fund the rest of the puzzle.
Inside the club, though, the stance is different. Arteta wants his captain to stay. Arsenal hope to tie Odegaard down to a new long-term deal at the Emirates, with the next steps in his future mapped out as far back as March. He is seen as a pillar, not a bargaining chip.
Built to stay at the top
Whatever happens in the market, Merson does not see this title as a one-off. He looks at Arsenal and sees a team built on reliability, not streaks.
“I’d be shocked if Arsenal went away. I just think Arsenal are a proper solid, solid football team with solid seven, eight out of 10 players, week in, week out,” he said. “Across the board, sevens and eights.”
That consistency underpinned their title run. It also hints at something more ominous for their rivals: a side that can sustain a challenge year after year, not just catch fire for a single season.
Yet even a solid champion can be upgraded. Arsenal’s recruitment team know it. So does Merson. The search for a wide forward continues, with sources indicating the club are strongly interested in a Premier League star. Any deal would be expensive – potentially up to £100m – and his current club are determined not to lose an outstanding young talent.
Add that to the dream of Alvarez and Doué, and the numbers soar. The choices become harder. The stakes, higher.
Arsenal have climbed back to the summit in England. The next step is to build a side that can walk into any stadium in Europe and expect to win. Whether that means a £190m gamble, a painful sale, or a more measured evolution, the question now is not if they can compete.
It is how far they are willing to go to make sure this era belongs to them.
