Alvarez up front, no Odegaard: Arsenal’s stunning 2026/27 XI if they land their top transfer targets

Arsenal’s XI next season could be even better than the one topping the Premier League and Champions League tables this term.

As we pass January and look ahead to the summer transfer window, the Gunners are being linked with exciting names like Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez and Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali.

This is already a very strong Arsenal squad, but they could probably do with an upgrade on Viktor Gyokeres up front after his slightly unconvincing debut season at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal exploring Julian Alvarez transfer

Arsenal have already begun exploring a potential ambitious transfer swoop for Atletico front-man Alvarez, who could be ideal to play up front in Mikel Arteta’s side.

According to ESPN, Arsenal are looking into signing Alvarez, and if they can pull that deal off he’ll surely be first choice over Gyokeres.

The Argentina international is another player not quite at his best at the moment, as he’s scored only one goal in his last thirteen games.

Still, there’s surely a good chance we’ll see Alvarez bounce back after a generally strong record of 40 goals in 88 games for Atletico, while he also shone with 36 goals in two seasons as a squad player at Manchester City.

How would Sandro Tonali fit in at Arsenal?

Recently linked with Arsenal by the Athletic, Newcastle midfielder Tonali is a top performer in the Premier League, though it’s not necessarily clear how he’d fit in in Arteta’s line up.

One has to assume Declan Rice isn’t losing his place any time soon, so could it be that Tonali is seen as an upgrade on Martin Zubimendi?

That seems very harsh on the Spain international, who has been mostly superb for AFC this term, but who has also made a few high-profile mistakes.

It’s possible that this is just down to fatigue from starting so many games, so the addition of Tonali could allow for more rotation.

Arsenal’s potential 2026/27 XI in full

Here’s our potential Arsenal XI for next season, with Alvarez up front and Tonali in midfield, while there’s also the addition of Nathaniel Brown at left-back.

Our information is that Brown is being eyed by Arsenal after impressing at Eintracht Frankfurt, so there’s perhaps a decent chance that Piero Hincapie’s loan won’t be made permanent, while Riccardo Calafiori’s injury record could mean he’s relegated to being a backup player.

This is a very strong-looking Arsenal team, and if they can keep other big names like Eberechi Eze, Martin Odegaard and Noni Madueke around as rotation options then they’ll surely be in good shape to challenge on all four fronts again as they are this term.

How happy would you be with these Arsenal signings, Gooners? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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