Arsenal 'weigh up £40m Ollie Watkins move' following shock Julian Alvarez transfer update

Arsenal could reportedly turn their attention to Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins , having hit bumps in the road pursuing Julian Alvarez. Earlier this week, reports claimed the Gunners would actually be willing to offload Viktor Gyokeres in order to land Alvarez from Atletico Madrid. The Argentina striker, who scored 49 goals and 17 assists in 106 matches for Atletico since his move to La Liga from City, is admired by the Gunners hierarchy. Mikel Arteta wants to bolster his front line this summer and Alvarez is one of those targets, though Atleti have thus far been stubborn to let him leave , with Barcelona also keen on signing the 26-year-old. Arsenal have also been linked with signing Watkins in previous transfer windows from Aston Villa. The Europa League champions recently turned down an approach from Turkish outfit Fenerbahce, who were reportedly preparing a £35million offer for the England international, but Villa made it abundantly clear they would reject such a proposal. According to The Sun , numerous clubs across England and Europe are eager to secure Watkins' signature this summer. Fenerbahce had hoped to tempt the 30 year old with a three-year contract worth between £7.5million and £8.5million annually. FOLLOW OUR ARSENAL FB PAGE! Latest Gunners news, analysis and much more via our dedicated Facebook page While Villa firmly communicated their position to the Turkish side, both Arsenal and Manchester United harbour interest in acquiring Watkins as they seek to bolster their attacking options, with £40million potentially sufficient to bring Villa to the negotiating table. Arsenal are anticipated to offload Gabriel Jesus this summer, with the Brazilian forward courting attention from Serie A outfit AC Milan, and the Gunners reportedly regard Watkins as the perfect replacement. Meanwhile, United face speculation surrounding Joshua Zirkzee's potential return to Italy, with Juventus pursuing the former Bologna striker, who excelled in Serie A prior to his switch to Old Trafford. Earlier reports this week suggested the Dutch international had given Juventus his approval ahead of transfer discussions with United, though currently, no formal club-to-club negotiations have taken place. AS Roma are also understood to be keen on signing Zirkzee this summer, and should United part ways with the 25-year-old, The Sun reports that Michael Carrick's outfit would be poised to lodge a formal push for Watkins. Villa find themselves in a precarious financial position this summer, aware they must offload players to satisfy UEFA regulations. United capitalised on a £35m release clause in Youri Tielemans' Villa contract to secure the Belgian international's services, while PSG are in talks to re-sign Lucas Digne. Villa stand to pocket a reported £45m from those two deals, though they've brought in Swiss talent Johan Manzambi for a comparable sum. They've also approved the departure of Morgan Rogers in a club-record £117m sale, with Chelsea pipping Arsenal to his signature.