Arsenal were heavily linked with Dusan Vlahovic early in Mikel Arteta’s tenure before he chose to sign for Juventus, but the Serbian is again on the market after his contract expired
Juventus and Dusan Vlahovic will go their separate ways this summer
Dusan Vlahovic has failed to agree a new deal with Juventus and the former Arsenal target will now be on the market for nothing.
The Serbian has spent just over four years in Turin but the two parties have been someway apart in their salary expectations, which has led to them parting ways, reports Gazzetta dello Sport.
Vlahovic initially made his name at Fiorentina and it was those performances that tempted Juventus into signing the Serbian. He had notched 41 times in a season and a half, which led to talk of a move to the Emirates in January 2022, but he ultimately remained in Serie A.
Sky Sports reported at the time that Arsenal were put off by the hefty transfer fee that ultimately proved the stumbling block. He eventually moved for £66million. Vlahovic was also keen to play for a Champions League club and at the time the Gunners hadn’t qualified for in the four seasons leading up to that window whilst Juventus were regulars.
Arsenal, fresh off winning the Premier League, are set to add more quality to their squad and Vlahovic was a player they wanted earlier in the Mikel Arteta-era.
Previously Juventus boss Luciano Spalletti, who arrived midway through the campaign, had made it known that he wanted to retain the 26-year-old and had hoped his superiors and the striker would reach an agreement.
“We’ve suffered the loss of Vlahovic like the bread and butter,” he said. “You can’t play football without someone with his characteristics, without a strong, physical threat who scores goals. The renewal? From what I know, the club has attempted to make contact of this kind and will try again because that’s what they tell me, and I trust my directors.”
Viktor Gyokeres moved to Arsenal last summer from Sporting Lisbon(Image: Getty)
Vlahovic was not the prolific striker that Juventus had been seeking and the striker has only claimed a solitary Coppa Italia during his time at the club, who were once the dominant force in Italy. Following his arrival the Serbian scored 68 times in 168 outings and was named the best striker in Serie A in 2024.
Arsenal did spend £64m to sign Viktor Gyokeres 12 months ago and the Swede scored more than 20 times in his debut season, but did not entirely convinced. In crunch games, including the Champions League final, he found himself on the bench with Kai Havertz preferred.
The manner in which the Gunners lost to PSG at the weekend shone a light on their shortcomings in the final third and, following their champion year, there is an expectation that Arteta will dip into the market to add even more quality in attack as Arsenal look to seize the initiative.
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