Arteta told to correct mistake & sign £100m star who’ll help Arsenal surpass Man City

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Alan Brazil is convinced that Arsenal need to sign a striker.

Arsenal spent heavily in the recent summer transfer window. A club-record fee of £105 million was spent to secure the services of Declan Rice. Defender Jurrien Timber and goalkeeper David Raya were brought to the Emirates Stadium, whilst Kai Havertz was signed to take up a midfield role following the departure of Granit Xhaka. 

Mikel Arteta neglected to bring in an out-and-out striker, though. The attention lavished on the defence has paid off, as the Gunners have conceded just ten Premier League goals so far this season. However, Arsenal are lacking a prolific goalscorer to lead the line. 

Gabriel Jesus has been hampered by injury issues, and in any case, lacks the firepower needed to spearhead a Premier League title-winning attack. Equally, there are doubts over Eddie Nketiah’s ability to consistently shine at the highest level.

The Mirror have reported that Arsenal are keen to sign Brentford striker Ivan Toney in the upcoming January transfer window. This rumour suggests that Arteta recognises this shortcoming in his squad. 

Will Arsenal come to rue not signing a striker in the summer?

Alan Brazil believes that Arsenal could suffer the consequences of not having an elite goalscorer this season. Speaking on talkSPORT (15/11/2023, 06:43), the former forward said, “rather than buying a goalkeeper, he should have bought a centre-forward I think…Who is the centre forward for Arsenal who’s going to fire them past Manchester City? Come on, look at the games this year, who’s going to score the goals that will score the goals, I haven’t seen it yet.”

When asked who he feels Arsenal need to take their attack to the next level, Brazil replied, “I don’t know, that’s Arteta’s job. He’s got to find a striker. I’d have bought the boy from Brentford [Toney].”

According to Sky Sports, the Bees have now put a £100 million price tag on Toney. Arsenal would need to sell a number of players in order to fund a move for the 27-year-old. 

Brazil raises an interesting question, as to whether Arteta would have been wiser to sign a striker in the summer, rather than Raya. The Spanish ‘keeper was signed on an initial season-long loan, but the Gunners are expected to pay £27 million to make his stay permanent. 

Considering Arsenal already have Aaron Ramsdale on the books, a new striker may have been a smarter addition than another goalkeeper.