Free-agent Vlahovic available for Arsenal three years after snubbing Gunners for Juventus

Dusan Vlahovic is a free agent after his Juventus contract expired on Wednesday, handing Arsenal a second opportunity to sign the Serbian striker they were allegedly rebuffed by three years ago.

The 26-year-old was among Europe’s most coveted forwards when he departed Fiorentina in a £66 million deal in January 2022. Arsenal were reported to have tabled an offer of around £60 million that same summer, only for Vlahovic to choose Juventus instead — a decision that drew sharp criticism from former Italy striker Antonio Cassano.

“In my opinion, [Vlahovic’s decision] is sensationally wrong,” Cassano said on Christian Vieri’s Bobo TV channel in 2022. “For the type of player I think he is, he needed to make an intermediate step to a team like Arsenal, Tottenham, or Sevilla. For me, he has always been a second-tier player.”

Vlahovic himself pushed back on the framing at the time, insisting he had only ever had one destination in mind. “Maybe my agent knows [about Arsenal’s offer], but I never talked to anyone about it,” he told The Telegraph. “I just had one club in my mind because Juventus is Juventus. There is nothing else to say. I definitely identify with their DNA. The Juventus personality coincides with my personality.”

Whether Arsenal will move to capitalise on his availability this summer remains to be seen. Mikel Arteta has Viktor Gyokeres as his first-choice striker — the Swede played a central role in the club’s first Premier League title in 20 years — while Kai Havertz also contributed meaningfully when fit. Even so, adding a proven frontman of Vlahovic’s profile as depth behind Gyokeres could appeal to a squad now looking to build on that championship.

For context, Juventus had finished fourth in back-to-back Serie A seasons at the point Cassano labelled Arsenal an “intermediate” club — a characterisation that has aged poorly given the Gunners’ subsequent rise under Arteta. Whether Vlahovic, now entering his prime years and without a club, views north London differently in 2025 is the more pressing question.