Arsenal’s current striker injury crisis is cutting even deeper now that one former star sold for just £4million is shining on the big stage for his new club.
The Gunners are short on options up front, with Gabriel Jesus’ ACL injury only being impacted further by Kai Havertz tearing his hamstring in training.
With Mikel Arteta lacking other players to call up as out-and-out centre-forwards, it has brought some criticism upon the recruitment department.
Arsenal could have signed another striker over the past two windows to help but avoided doing so, to much scrutiny.
Only adding to that is the view of the strikers that have been let go, not least with one impressing in Europe.
Mika Biereth scores second hat-trick since Monaco transfer
Arsenal sold striker Mika Biereth for £4million to Sturm Graz last summer, following an impressive loan spell in Austria.
Just months after making the move there permanently, he was then attracting interest across Europe in the January window.
Biereth then joined AS Monaco in January, handing Arsenal a nice little cash injection from a sell-on clause.
The striker has hit the ground running in France, opening his account in his second game before bagging a hat-trick in his third appearance.
Just two matches later, Biereth has continued his scoring streak as he scored yet another hat-trick, this time against FC Nantes.
With Edu Gaspar sanctioning the initial sale, it has proven to be something of a mistake early on, not least when Arsenal need strikers at their disposal.
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Arsenal need to fix transfer mistake in summer
Not only is Biereth’s exit seemingly a huge error, but the lack of any other striker joining the club over the past window is a massive problem.
Arsenal were linked with plenty of centre-forward options, from Benjamin Sesko to Alexander Isak, but failed to make that move.
While the Gunners managed to solve their scoring issues at the back end of last season, the current campaign has shown exactly why it was a mistake not to reinforce in that area.
While the best time to solve that issue has gone, the next best time is the next available, which is over the coming transfer window.
It may be a high-profile arrival, but they seemingly missed out on a home-grown prospect in Biereth.
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