Arsenal’s striker crisis has gone from bad to worse.
The Gunners have been without a prolific striker for a few years now. They failed to address that issue in the summer, and Gabriel Jesus suffered a season-ending injury last month.
Arsenal had the chance to sign a replacement in the winter window, but the board did not fulfil Mikel Arteta’s public plea for a new striker.
Now, Kai Havertz has suffered a season-ending injury, and Arsenal are in big, big trouble. Their decision to not strengthen their attack in January has backfired.
Why Arsenal did not sign Randal Kolo Muani in January
Arsenal were linked with moves to sign several strikers in the winter window.
A move for Benjamin Sesko was impossible, but the Gunners were offered Alvaro Morata on a long deal until the end of the season.
Mathys Tel was also an option for Arsenal, but Mikel Arteta decided not to sign him, and the Frenchman joined Tottenham Hotspur instead.
Another player Arsenal could’ve signed was Randal Kolo Muani of PSG. The Frenchman was available on loan and linked with a move to England, but the Gunners showed no concrete interest.
Fabrizio Romano has explained why.
He said in a video on his YouTube channel: “There were also other opportunities at the beginning of the market, for example, Randal Kolo Muani from Paris Saint-Germain.
“He’s doing fantastic at Juventus, already five goals scored with the Italian side. Why Arsenal didn’t attack the deal? Because they had the feeling they couldn’t offer a starting spot, a regular starting spot, to Randal Kolo Muani, similar to Mathys Tel.
“Arsenal were not in a position to go to the player and say: ‘Okay, in the next four months, you will play basically 90% of the games, start 90% of the games’. A that point, Arsenal didn’t have that sort of power.”
Romano finished by saying: “So, Arsenal never really entered the race for Kolo Muani.”
Randal Kolo Muani’s stats since joining Juventus
Kolo Muani would’ve been a great option for Arsenal.
The France international is still only 26, strong, can play across the frontline and is a goalscorer. He is exactly what Arsenal need right now.
Kolo Muani’s stats since joining Juventus on loan show that Arsenal made a mistake by not signing him.
| Games | Goals | Minutes per goal | |
| Randal Kolo Muani at Juventus | 4 | 5 | 67.8 |
When Havertz was fit, Arsenal felt they could not guarantee regular minutes for Kolo Muani – that feels really silly now as the German is ruled out for the remainder of the season.
Kolo Muani’s numbers at Juventus are absolutely extraordinary. He could’ve done a great job if Arsenal had signed him.
That mistake could now lead to another trophyless campaign at the Emirates.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
