Neville backs Alvarez move as Arsenal seek Champions League breakthrough
By Joel Masibo, August 22, 2026Arsenal have made an excellent opening to their Premier League title defence, but former Manchester United defender Gary Neville believes the reigning champions could still use one more elite attacking option, and has identified Atletico Madrid forward Julian Alvarez as the ideal addition.
The Gunners followed their Community Shield triumph over Manchester City by producing another convincing display, defeating newly promoted Coventry City 3-0 at the Emirates Stadium on Friday night, August 21, 2026. Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard all found the net as Mikel Arteta’s side controlled the contest.
Despite Arsenal’s strong start, Neville believes they require an attacking player capable of producing something special in difficult matches. The former Manchester United defender feels Alvarez could provide precisely that quality.
“What a squad [Mikel Arteta] has built,” said Neville. “If he puts another forward into that, if they could get Julian Alvarez somehow, that would light this place up as you’d have a world-class striker to go with all the world-class defenders and midfielders.”
Alvarez is understood to be attracting interest from several leading European clubs, with Arsenal, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain among those monitoring the Argentina international.
Atletico Madrid, however, have shown little appetite for selling their star forward. Club chief executive Miguel Angel Gil previously indicated that the Spanish side would not consider offers for Alvarez, even if they reached £170 million.
Neville nevertheless believes Arsenal should explore the possibility of making an ambitious late bid, arguing that the addition of a world-class attacker could transform the club’s prospects in Europe.
“They wouldn’t just become Premier League title winners they’d go the next step and win a Champions League. It’s a massive 10 days. He needs a bit of magic up front – someone that can win a game for you when you don’t play well.”
Neville believes Alvarez could elevate Odegaard
Arteta said after the Coventry victory that Arsenal’s priority remains developing the players already at the club and improving their understanding on the pitch.
“The main focus has to be to improve our players and the connection between them,” Arteta said.
The Arsenal boss also highlighted the limited number of occasions last season when Odegaard, Saka and Ben White were able to play together on the right because of injuries.
Neville, however, believes Odegaard could become even more influential if Arsenal added a striker capable of making intelligent runs behind opposing defences.
“He [Odegaard] is exceptional. If there was an Ian Wright-type player up front for Arsenal who makes those short runs he’d be even better,” said Neville.
The pundit feels the movement of Arsenal’s current forwards can sometimes restrict Odegaard’s ability to play penetrating passes.
“As [Kai] Havertz and [Viktor] Gyokeres always come to the ball, Odegaard has to play possession rather than playing the slip passes. If Arsenal were to sign Julian Alvarez then he’d go up a level as it would be perfect for the style of play.”
Carragher sees room for improvement in Arsenal attack
Neville’s fellow Sky Sports analyst Jamie Carragher also believes Arsenal could benefit from having an established world-class attacker, although he remains optimistic about the potential of Saka and Odegaard.
“I still think Arsenal lack a world-class player in the front four,” he said. “About two years ago I thought Saka and Odegaard would make that next step. For whatever reason it’s not happened due to injuries or Arsenal not being at their best. Those two were close to getting to the levels shown by Man City and Liverpool players, like [Kevin] De Bruyne and [Erling] Haaland or [Mohamed] Salah and [Sadio] Mane. They took their teams to the title.
“Arsenal won the league without [Saka and Odegaard] doing it. They did it by having a great defence and goalkeeper. But I still think Saka and Odegaard can get back to where they were a couple of years ago.”
Carragher also suggested that Arsenal’s status as champions could itself provide a significant boost as they attempt to compete at the highest level.
“The psychological factor of being champions now will take this Arsenal team to another level rather than buying a superstar player.”
Tzolis and Odegaard provide early encouragement
Arsenal’s opening performances have also offered evidence that Arteta’s existing squad is capable of making significant progress.
New signing Christos Tzolis impressed against Coventry after initially taking a few minutes to settle into the game. He quickly became a major threat on the left, producing two efforts on goal and creating two opportunities within a short spell.
His contribution was particularly important in the build-up to Arsenal’s decisive goals. He won possession high up the pitch for the opening strike before supplying the delivery that allowed Saka to score the second.
Odegaard has also started the season in impressive fashion. After playing a key role in the Community Shield, the Norway international scored against Coventry to open his league account for the campaign.
The goal was particularly notable given his injury-hit previous season, when he missed 30 matches across all competitions. It was only the second occasion since December 2024 that Saka, Odegaard and Havertz had started together.
All three players ended the Coventry match on the scoresheet, offering Arsenal supporters renewed optimism about what the attacking trio can produce if they remain fit.
While Arsenal’s existing squad is already showing encouraging signs, Neville believes adding Alvarez could provide the extra attacking spark needed to turn domestic dominance into Champions League success.