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Yesterday — 20 June 2026CaughtOffside

From Spain: Arsenal could sacrifice summer signing in blockbuster transfer twist

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By:Saikat
20 June 2026 at 14:30

Arsenal have been linked with the move for Julian Alvarez in recent months.

They are hoping to sign the 26-year-old Atletico Madrid striker, and El Chiringuito have now claimed that they already have an agreement in place with the La Liga club. Apparently, Atletico Madrid will receive €50 million along with Viktor Gyokeres as part of the deal.

It remains to be seen how the situation develops.

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Arsenal need Julian Alvarez

There is no doubt that Arsenal need more quality in the attacking unit, and Alvarez would be an exceptional acquisition. He is a world-class striker who has consistently shown his quality with Atletico Madrid. He has previously impressed in the Premier League with Manchester City.

Alvarez is a key player for club and country, and he could transform Arsenal’s attack. They need someone who can find the back of the net regularly and create opportunities for his teammates. The 26-year-old could be the ideal forward for Arsenal. He scored 20 goals and picked up nine assists last season.

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Alvarez could be an upgrade on Gyokeres

Gyokeres joined Arsenal last summer, and he has scored 21 goals in all competitions. However, his overall football ability leaves a lot to be desired. His link-up and technical ability are quite mediocre, and Alwar would certainly be a huge upgrade.

If they can sign the player for €50 million, along with the Swedish international, it could prove a wise move for Arsenal. It will be interesting to see if they can wrap up the move quickly. The player is currently away on World Cup duty with Argentina, and it is assumed that any move will have to wait until the tournament ends.

Arsenal will look to defend their Premier League crown next season, and signings like Alvarez could take them to another level. Alvarez has also been linked with PSG and Barcelona.

The post From Spain: Arsenal could sacrifice summer signing in blockbuster transfer twist appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Before yesterdayCaughtOffside

Barcelona and PSG told to look at €500m release clause by defiant club president

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By:Will Faulks
17 June 2026 at 20:15

Julian Alvarez could be staying at Atletico after all, now that approaches from some of Europe’s top clubs have been rebuffed.

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Earlier this summer there was a moment where Julian Alvarez looked very likely to be moving away from Atletico Madrid.

He had Real Madrid, PSG and Barcelona all interested in him. When that trio are on your case, a move always feels likely. However the way that Real’s offer was dismissed out of hand, and a lack of serious follow up from the other teams, has rather convinced us that Alvarez could stay put after all.

Atletico prepare to stand firm over Alvarez after superclub interest

Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo has certainly laid down the law. In an interview with El Desmarque he told anyone interested to “look at the contract.” There they will find a €500m release clause.

“It seems like this is the story of the summer; you all know exactly how things stand. Julian is an Atletico Madrid player, and I believe he will remain an Atletico Madrid player,” Cerezo concluded.

Things can still change if Alvarez starts putting pressure on from his end – but for now we expect these teams to start looking elsewhere for attacking talent.

In other news…

Senny Mayulu is in demand this summer – but according to most French sources he’s more likely to sign a new contract than depart PSG this summer.

Man U have already wrapped up one midfielder deal this summer, and are looking to compete another before a bidding war begins, according to Fabrizio Romano.

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Spanish journalist claims “done deal with Arsenal” for big-name strikers to swap places

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By:Mark Brus
17 June 2026 at 15:13

Arsenal have reportedly agreed a swap deal with Atletico Madrid which will see Julian Alvarez and Viktor Gyokeres move in either direction.

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The Gunners are one of the clubs to have been linked with Alvarez in recent times, along with Barcelona, but journalist Jota Jordi has now provided a major update to El Chiringuito.

See the video clip below as the Spanish journalist claims that Barca asked again about Alvarez, only to be told that the Argentina international is not for sale and that an agreement is in place for a swap deal for Gyokeres…

? EXCLUSIVA @jotajordi13 ?

?? "Gil Marín LLAMÓ a LAPORTA para decirle que JULIÁN NO está en VENTA".

? "Pero el ATLETI tiene un ACUERDO CERRADO con el ARSENAL para VENDERLO: 50M + Gyokeres". pic.twitter.com/Lt0sgKAkzi

— El Chiringuito TV (@elchiringuitotv) June 17, 2026

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It remains to be seen how accurate this is for a number of reasons, but Arsenal fans will no doubt be interested to see this story gaining momentum.

Swap deals are pretty rare in football, despite there often being many transfer rumours about them being discussed or offered, so we wouldn’t exactly bank on this just yet.

How likely is a Julian Alvarez and Viktor Gyokeres swap deal?

While it’s always important to respect different journalists and their sources, we also feel a duty to inform our readers that this is probably a story that is unlikely to go anywhere.

As already noted, swap deals are rare, and it’s hard to imagine Arsenal would be prepared to offload Gyokeres after just one season in which he actually finished with more goals than Alvarez, and contributed to their Premier League title win.

That’s not to say the Sweden international’s time at the Emirates Stadium has been perfect, but it’s surely enough to earn him a bit more time.

Targeting Alvarez still makes sense to give Arsenal more options up front, so that could still be something worth watching out for.

However, the idea that a huge swap like this would already be agreed just doesn’t seem plausible, especially when there’s been no indication of top tier journalists like David Ornstein or Fabrizio Romano reporting anything similar.

El Chiringuito’s journalists obviously have genuine connections and break a lot of major stories, but there’s a general consensus that they also sensationalise things a bit for their audience, and that some of their exclusives should be taken with a pinch of salt.

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World Cup Golden Boot contenders – Can Kane see off Mbappe for the top scorer prize?

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By:Mark Brus
16 June 2026 at 11:57

The World Cup 2026 has officially kicked off now, and soon we’ll see some of the top Golden Boot contenders like Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe in action.

Mbappe won the top scorer prize at the 2022 World Cup, scoring eight times, including a hat-trick in France’s final defeat to Argentina.

Four years before that, Kane was the winner as he scored six goals, but could we still see veterans like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in contention?

See below for a list of the top ten contenders for the World Cup Golden Boot as the bookies have picked the most likely candidates, with some money to be made if you use a Fanduel promo code…

Kylian Mbappe – 6/1

Mbappe had another prolific season with Real Madrid, even if his goals didn’t help his club to glory. Playing alongside such a world class pool of talents in this France squad, though, it’s hard not to see Mbappe getting a very good opportunity to both win the World Cup and the Golden Boot this summer.

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Harry Kane – 7/1

A lethal striker showing no sign of slowing down with age, Kane is probably England’s most important player, so seems a decent shout for the Golden Boot, even if Thomas Tuchel’s squad as a whole is arguably not looking quite as strong as recent tournaments.

Mikel Oyarzabal – 10/1

Not the biggest name or best striker on this list, but Mikel Oyarzabal has shown he can do the job up front for Spain, who will be seen as another of the favourites to win the tournament this summer.

Erling Haaland 16/1

Norway will be an interesting dark horse to watch this summer, precisely because of the threat of Erling Haaland up front. The Manchester City striker had a prolific qualifying campaign, scoring a remarkable 16 goals, and finding the back of the net in every game on their way to the World Cup. Surely decent odds for the Golden Boot?

Lionel Messi – 16/1

Not the goal machine he once was, but underestimate Lionel Messi at your peril.

Cristiano Ronaldo – 20/1

Now 41 years of age, Cristiano Ronaldo will be like a man possessed at what will surely be his last chance to win the World Cup, so could that see him really step up and scoop the top scorer prize?

Julian Alvarez – 20/1

Aside from Messi, Julian Alvarez could be the main goal threat to watch out for in this Argentina squad after two prolific seasons with Atletico Madrid.

Kai Havertz – 22/1

Not exactly an out-and-out striker, but Kai Havertz is Mr Reliable for both Arsenal and Germany, plus he missed so much of the season just gone due to injury that he’s actually had more rest than most of the other players at this tournament.

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Lamine Yamal – 25/1

The undisputed gem in this Spain side, could we about to see Lamine Yamal enjoy a memorable first World Cup? He’s more of a creator than a goal-scorer, but these look like tempting odds.

Raphinha – 28/1

Finally, one of the most prolific goal-scoring wingers in the game right now, Raphinha will surely be one to watch if Brazil have a good tournament.

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