Who is Raul de Tomas? The £58.6m striker linked with Arsenal transfer amid Dusan Vlahovic blow

Arsenal's pursuit of Fiorentina star Dusan Vlahovic appears to be unlikely as Juventus reportedly ramp up their interest in the Serbian international.

The 21-year-old was Mikel Arteta's top transfer target this month as the Spaniard looks to find a long-term replacement for now-exiled captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and out-of-contract forwards Eddie Nketiah and Alexandre Lacazette.

Now, the Gunners are exploring alternatives to Vlahovic, with Alexander Isak of Real Sociedad and Lille's Jonathan David two centre-forwards that have been linked with a switch to the Emirates Stadium.

Another frontman that has been named as a potential target is Raul de Tomas and Spanish outlet AS claims that the north Londoners are keen on the Espanyol ace.

But who is de Tomas and what would he bring to the club if he signed? Here, takes a closer look.

Aged 27, de Tomas is a talented forward born in Madrid, Spain.

He is predominantly a central striker, currently plying his trade with La Liga outfit Espanyol but has occasionally operated on the wing, or as a second-striker when called upon.

The Spaniard came through the ranks at Real Madrid's esteemed academy before enjoying productive loan stints with Cordoba, Real Valladolid and Rayo Vallecano, eventually signing for Portuguese giants Benfica in 2019.

Six months later de Tomas had left Os Encarnados, joining Espanyol for a reported £20million.

Arteta has consistently shown that he wants the player spearheading his attack to excel on the ball whilst offering the ability to bring the likes of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard into the game.

This is something that de Tomas would have no problem with, averaging 1.63 passes into the final third, 3.85 progressive carries