In a late summer transfer window development, Arsenal made contact with Lautaro Martinez, the forward for Inter Milan, regarding a potential transfer. This information was reported by Isaan Khan for the Daily Mail, highlighting that Arsenal's assistant manager, Gabriel Heinze, reached out to the Argentine international early last week.
Despite the inquiry, Inter Milan was not open to negotiations for Martinez, who is under contract with the club for another three years. This situation indicates that Arsenal's interest in the 29-year-old striker was not pursued vigorously, as Inter is unlikely to part ways with a key player so late in the transfer period.
Lautaro Martinez has been a significant figure at Inter since joining from Racing Club in 2018. If he remains with the club until the end of his current contract, he will have spent nearly 11 years with the Serie A side. During his tenure, he has helped the team secure three Serie A titles, three Coppa Italia trophies, and three Supercoppa Italiana titles, making a total of 378 appearances and netting 175 goals.
In the 2025/26 season, Martinez had an impressive individual performance, scoring 22 goals and providing six assists in 41 matches. His contributions included a goal in the Coppa Italia final against Lazio and 17 goals that were pivotal in Inter's latest league title victory. However, his performance in European competitions was less stellar, as he managed only four goals in three matches against teams like Slavia Praha and Union SG, but failed to score in five consecutive matches against stronger opponents such as Atletico Madrid and Liverpool.
Arsenal's late approach for Martinez may reflect their urgent need to enhance their attacking options, especially after a summer where they let several players go but only managed to sign Christos Tzolis for their front line. With the transfer window now closed, manager Mikel Arteta will be looking to ensure that the lack of new signings does not adversely affect the team's performance in the ongoing season.
The Gunners' pursuit of Martinez underscores the challenges teams face in securing top talent as the transfer window draws to a close, particularly when dealing with clubs that are not inclined to sell their star players. As the season progresses, Arsenal will need to rely on their existing squad to meet the demands of both domestic and European competitions.
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