Why Arsenal have turned to Noni Madueke despite transfer interest in Rodrygo, Nico Williams & Anthony Gordon as '#NoToMadueke' trends on social media among fuming fans

Arsenal have made an opening bid of £50 million ($68m) for the 23-year-old, a fee which includes add-ons, but while Chelsea are open to negotiation, they believe the England international is worth more and are holding out for a higher fee. Meanwhile, some Gunners fans are baffled by the amount of money their club is willing to spend on a relatively unproven Premier League player, leading to the hashtag '#NoToMadueke' trending on social media.

Writing on X, AfcGabeast said: "You have to ask yourself if Madueke was at Arsenal do u think we could sell him for 50m? yeah I thought so, that how insane this business is"

EGTVEgal added: "Nobody wants or needs Noni Madueke at Arsenal stop. £50M for Madueke? Arsenal are shooting themselves in the foot. Sort out Eze or Rodrygo first"

Criticising boss Mikel Arteta, clinicalkai asked how "£50m for Madueke can be easily completed yet £70m for Gyokeres of £60m for Eze somehow cannot".

White_Yardie added: "I don’t believe all these transfer rumours but if Arsenal spend £55m on Madueke and don’t get Eze & Gyokeres then BERTA IS A FRAUD"

Some fans saw it differently, with akarsenalnews writing: "If Madueke was coming from PSG, everyone would see it so differently. Madueke isn't the issue, the fact he's coming from Chelsea is."

Arsenal's summer search for a left winger has been well documented, with other rumoured options including Real Madrid’s Rodrygo, Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers, Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon and Athletic’s Nico Williams. However, according to The Times, the north Londoners believe all these players would cost more than Madueke, who they are aiming to acquire for roughly £50m. Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta is determined not to overspend on transfer fees or wages despite pressure from fans, and he still firmly believes that there are good players available for around £65m ($88m).

Berta is still doing plenty behind the scenes to secure the number one priority for Arsenal this summer: an elite-level striker. The club's pursuit of Viktor Gyokeres has been clear to see, but Berta appeared to make genuine strides earlier this week by flying out to Lisbon to hammer out an agreement with Sporting CP.

Chelsea are reportedly using Newcastle's recent £55m ($75m) signing of Anthony Elanga from Nottingham Forest as a benchmark. The winger has been a more impressive Premier League performer than Madueke in recent seasons, but either way, it appears as though the Chelsea forward's move to Arsenal hinges on whether the Gunners are willing to splash out a bit extra.