Mikel Arteta should sign player he previously worked with instead of Christos Tzolis

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Arsenal are strengthening their attack this summer on multiple fronts.

Morgan Rogers and Bradley Barcola remain the primary targets for the left wing, with Andrea Berta reportedly working on both deals simultaneously.

Those pursuits are expected to run independently from the search for a replacement for Leandro Trossard, who is edging closer to a move to Besiktas.

Trossard will be a huge miss, and whoever comes in in his stead has big shoes to fill, given the number of massive goals he has a knack for coming up with.

👀 How much is Leandro Trossard worth to Arsenal? Should the Gunners be selling him at all?!

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Replacing his impact won’t be easy.

The expected solution is Christos Tzolis from Club Brugge, with a deal of around £35million understood to be close.

At 24, the Greek winger offers pace and directness, and there is undeniable potential there.

But he will be coming in as a relative unknown, unproven at the highest level, and stepping into a role that demands big-moment quality from day one.

Mikel Arteta could turn to a more credible option to replace Leandro Trossard

Ferran Torres has just had his best La Liga season, finishing as Barcelona’s joint top scorer with 16 goals.

Available for around €35million — a similar fee to Tzolis — he offers considerably more proven quality and he has done it in the Premier League before.

At 26, he is only two years older than Tzolis and has already demonstrated he can provide output at the highest level.

Arteta worked with Torres at Manchester City, where Pep Guardiola signed him for £20.8million.

The reunions with Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko from that era broadly worked, Raheem Sterling less so.

Torres, who assisted Mikel Merino’s winner against Portgual, has featured in all of Spain’s World Cup games up to now.

According to Florian Plettenberg, Torres’ future remains open with several clubs making offers.

Di Marzio now reports he has given the green light to join PSG, which suggests Arsenal never made a serious move.

Tzolis may yet prove to be a shrewd pick. But given the size of the boots he is being asked to fill, a player Arteta already knows and trusts feels like the smarter choice.