If you’re a winger and you fancy a move away, please notify Arsenal.
For the Gunners, their pursuit of first-team improvements has not been easy this summer. Rejected by Vinicius Junior, it has been an uphill battle to secure their number one targets.
The state of the transfer market has not helped, either. One of their primary targets coming into the window was Morgan Rogers but Chelsea gazumped the Gunners by agreeing to pay a whopping £117m fee.
It’s a deal that has had an impact on the rest of the market. As a consequence, PSG have been demanding £130m-£140m to sell Bradley Barcola, putting both Arsenal and Liverpool off. The latter are still favourites to sign him but could there be a late bid from Mikel Arteta and Co?
Why Arsenal should hijack the Bradley Barcola move
The simple fact of the matter is that there isn’t a better winger on the market right now.
Deals across Europe may well be active for the likes of Ibrahim Mbaye, Ismaila Sarr and Yankuba Minteh but Barcola trumps them all.
He is one of the best wingers in world football, a player who has captivated French audiences for years now. PSG may well be happy to sell but he was one of their key players as they secured back to back Champions League titles.
In 2024/25, Barcola was electric, scoring 21 goals and registering a further 21 assists. Last term was slower but the wide man was still impressive, bagging 13 times and supplying seven assists for his teammates.
It’s a stark decline but the 23-year-old showed he’s still a menace on the flanks during the World Cup where he scored three goals for Didier Deschamps’ France side.
The definition of a maverick, he would tick so many boxes in Arsenal’s quest to replace Gabriel Martinelli. Christos Tzolis may have started his career in north London at a remarkable rate of knots but Barcola is the elite winger they have been craving all summer.
Barcola vs Martinelli: 25/26 league stats | ||
|---|---|---|
Stats (per 90 mins) | Barcola | Martinelli |
Non-penalty goals | 0.57 | 0.08 |
Shots | 3.45 | 2.43 |
Open play big chances created | 0.57 | 0.34 |
Shot-ending carries | 1.95 | 1.09 |
Successful dribbles | 1.85 | 1.85 |
Expected threat in build up | 0.51 | 0.27 |
Progressive carries | 3.70 | 3.52 |
Progressive passes | 3.09 | 1.34 |
Defensive ground duels won | 1.17 | 1.22 |
He ranked among the finest 5% of wingers in Europe’s top five leagues for big chances created from open play per 90 minutes last season and among the best 11% for expected threat in the build-up phases of play. He’s always involved, always trying to make something happen. Call him a right-footed Bukayo Saka if you will.
Expected Threat (xT) is a metric that quantifies how much a player’s actions (like a pass or carry) increase their team’s probability of scoring.
All that said, a deal does still feel rather unlikely this summer when you consider the fee and competition from Liverpool. As a result, perhaps Arsenal could look to develop a younger talent.
How Arsenal could sign their answer to Bradley Barcola
Arsenal have found it very difficult to bring in new forwards this summer but with six days left of the window, everything is coming to a head.
Julian Alvarez is now the number one target but the Gunners are also trying to tie up more business where possible.
Indeed, in their pursuit of a new winger, Andrea Berta and Co have landed on young Georgian winger Andria Bartishvili. Okay, okay, we know what you’re thinking.
Who and why? Well, at the age of 17, he is not the type of win-now signing that Arteta has been keen on luring to the club over the last year. Instead, he’s cut from a similar cloth as Jeremy Monga.
Remember him? Arsenal were on the verge of sealing a move for the former Leicester City wonderkid before Manchester City hijacked a move.
As a result, they’ve looked at other ways of prepearing for the future and in Bartishvili, they may have found their answer to both Monga and Barcola.
According to the Athletic this week, Arsenal have submitted a contract offer to the teenager in a bid to entice him to English football. Bartishvil currently plays for second division Georgian side Kolkheti Poti but is on loan at Iberia who play in the top-flight. His contract with Kolkheti expires later this year so the Gunners are aiming to sign him on a pre-contract agreement.
So, what’s all the fuss about? As it happens, Bartishvili is one of the most exciting young wingers in Europe right now and as per the BBC’s Sami Mokbel, has already been heralded as “the next Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.”
That’s not just because they hail from the same nation but also because of their play style. Rolled down socks, a wonderful low centre of gravity and a similar sort of running style, there is a lot to like about the way the teenager cuts about the pitch.
His best attributes are without a doubt his close touch control and his dribbling ability. In that regard, he’s not just like Kvaratskhelia but he’s also like his PSG teammate in the form of Barcola.
Watching clips of the youngster in action, you really do get a sense for precisely why he is like Kvaratskhelia and Barcola. He utilises body feints brilliantly and can leave a defender begging for mercy with his quick change of direction in and around the penalty area.
Sure, Bartishvili may not be ready to make an impact in the Premier League just yet but his reputation is growing all the time. He looks like the real deal and could develop into one of Europe’s best in time.
