Kai Havertz’s injury on the opening weekend of the season completely changed Arsenal’s plans.
The German suffered a serious knee issue at the worst possible time and suddenly left Mikel Arteta desperately short in attack.
Arsenal had already spent huge money in the summer window, but replacing Havertz quickly became a necessity.
The Gunners moved aggressively to sign Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace. Looking back now, that decision may have changed Arsenal’s entire season.
However, The Athletic claim that he was not the first name on Andrea Berta’s mind.
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Andrea Berta proposed Francesco Pio Esposito before Arsenal signed Eberechi Eze
When Arsenal began searching for attacking reinforcements after Kai Havertz’s injury, there were different opinions internally about what the squad needed most.
Berta felt the Gunners should sign another striker, somebody powerful and physically dominant who could give the attack a completely different dimension.
One of the names he suggested to Arteta was ‘powerful’ Inter Milan wonderkid Francesco Pio Esposito.
The Italian teenager is regarded as one of the brightest young forwards in Europe and has already earned a reputation for being incredibly aggressive and difficult to handle physically.
Arsenal clearly admired Esposito, and there was genuine interest in the idea of bringing him to north London.
However, Arteta ultimately decided Arsenal needed a different type of match-winner. That is when the focus shifted fully towards Eze.
Arsenal then worked frantically behind the scenes to beat Tottenham to his signature and complete the deal as quickly as possible.
The report even claims that Eze was waiting in a car outside the Emirates Stadium while the final paperwork was being sorted before his unveiling.
Thankfully for Arsenal supporters, everything got done in time, and it could not have worked out much better.
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What Francesco Pio Esposito’s agent has already said about Arsenal links
Despite Arsenal’s interest during the season, convincing Inter Milan to sell Esposito was always going to be incredibly difficult.
The Italian giants see him as one of the biggest talents at the club and believe he can become a major player for them in the future.
His agent, Mario Giuffredi, has already made that very clear too.
After Arsenal were linked with the striker earlier in the campaign, Esposito’s agent strongly hinted that leaving Inter was not part of the plan.
He said: “Arsenal on Pio Esposito? He’s doing well at Inter, he’s in love with Inter and he’ll be the Nerazzurri’s future for the next 10 years.”
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