Arsenal could supposedly solve their striker conundrum by sending Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Porto and welcoming Mehdi Taremi to the Emirates in exchange.
The Gunners have seemingly lost out on the signature of Dusan Vlahovic to Juventus and will allegedly be frustrated in their pursuit of Real Madrid striker Luka Jovic.
Mikel Arteta's side are thought to have shifted their focus to Alexander Isak or Dominic Calvert-Lewin instead, but such deals will be difficult to pull off in January.
Aubameyang has not played a single minute for Arsenal since being stripped of the captaincy last month and is widely expected to leave at some point in 2022, potentially in the final few days of the current window.
With the Gabon international not thought to be keen on a move to Saudi Arabia, The Canary Leaks reports that intermediaries have started to work on a deal which would see Aubameyang and Taremi move in opposite directions on loan.
The outlet adds that the Iran international would be open to a move to North London, but Porto would expect the Gunners to fork out a hefty chunk of his wages during his time in the Premier League.
Taremi has 11 goals and seven assists to his name from 19 Primeira Liga appearances this season, and the 29-year-old is reported to possess a €60m (£50.1m) release clause in his Porto contract.