Arsene Wenger identifies Arsenal’s real transfer miss in the January window

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Arsenal fans were not happy with how the January transfer window panned out, with Mikel Arteta’s attack shrinking week by week.

First, Arsenal lost Bukayo Saka to a hamstring tear, followed closely by the season-ending injury to Gabriel Jesus. 

The duo underwent surgery to repair their respective troubles but, Arsenal’s injury list did not end there. 

Gabriel Martinelli was ruled out for a month and to really test Arteta’s adaptability, Kai Havertz was ruled out for the season. 

The injury woes have seen Arsenal fans ask questions of the Kroenkes, who failed to support Arteta in the January transfer window despite there being targets to exploit. 

• READ MORE: What Arsenal are doing after Kai Havertz injury with stance on free agents and shock new striker option

Arsene Wenger praises former Arsenal target Omar Marmoush 

Despite Arsenal’s attack being excruciatingly light even before Martinelli and Havertz’s injuries, the board decided not to make moves in January. 

The Gunners did make a bid for Ollie Watkins in a half-hearted attempt to sign the Aston Villa striker but, the Villans were far from impressed by Arsenal’s actions. 

Aside from Watkins being the only player Arsenal officially moved for, there were several links, including Omar Marmoush, who eventually joined Manchester City.

Arsenal were linked to Marmoush before the explosive forward joined Pep Guardiola’s project, which is looking like a terrible miss after the Egyptian’s statement performance in the Premier League.

The former Eintracht Frankfurt star scored a 14-minute hat-trick against Newcastle United, prompting Arsene Wenger to share a rave review about the player linked to Arsenal.

“What I like is Marmoush he’s mobile and he looks powerful as well in his runs. He looks that in his mind, he’s not scared of anybody,” Wenger told beIN SPORTS.

“I saw him play at Frankfurt, he had some special talent and in the first two or three games [at Man City] we see that he was disappointed but yesterday [vs Newcastle] already you feel him [looking] comfortable.

“Now I want to see how he lives together with Haaland, if they start to score, that has to work well together, it’s very important.”

Not signing Marmoush was a remarkable transfer error for Arsenal 

City signed Marmoush from Frankfurt for a mere £59m, which when considering how he started the 2024/25 campaign was an absolute steal. 

The Egyptian had contributed to 24 Bundesliga goals in only 17 league appearances before joining City, where he’s now starting to show signs that he’s ready to pick up where he left off in Germany.

Given that Arteta pleaded for a striker in January, it’s remarkable that the Gunners didn’t push harder for Marmoush, who instead joined City to bolster Arsenal’s title rival’s squad.

It’s one of many missed opportunities at signing an established forward for Arsenal, who will surely be watching the 26-year-old wondering ‘what if’ after the January transfer window.