Arsenal have stepped up their interest in Viktor Gyokeres and are now working to finalise a deal with Sporting CP for the centre-forward.

It has been known for some time that Gyokeres features high on Arsenal’s list of striker targets, and that sporting director Andrea Berta has been exploring a deal for the Sweden international.

Arsenal have also been strongly considering other options, with RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko chief among them. As of Sunday afternoon, it was not yet certain that Arsenal had dropped their interest in Sesko in favour of Gyokeres.

The advancement of talks with Sporting would strongly suggest, however, that Arsenal are now ready to add Gyokeres to their squad ahead of the start of pre-season later this month.

Reports in Portugal and the 27-year-old’s native Sweden have both stated that the deal for Gyokeres to join Arsenal will be worth up to around £69 million.