Arsenal and Mikel Arteta received devastating injury news on Tuesday morning.
Gabriel Jesus will be out for a lengthy period after sustaining a ‘suspected ACL rupture’ in Sunday’s FA Cup clash with Manchester United at the Emirates.
The Brazilian went down shortly before half-time in the encounter, and was forced off the pitch on a stretcher.
An injury analyst predicted that Jesus had suffered an ACL issue, and these fears were confirmed by David Ornstein.
Likely to miss the rest of the season, Arsenal are in dire need of finding a replacement immediately, with Bukayo Saka’s absence meaning Mikel Arteta has just Kai Havertz, Leandro Trossard, Gabriel Martinelli and Raheem Sterling to pick from in his forward line.
Here are three players that the Gunners should consider signing to ease the burden this month.
Matheus Cunha
Matheus Cunha has been linked with Arsenal, and despite Wolves reportedly attempting to tie him down to a new contract, Arteta could prompt his board to make an audacious approach to land the player in the coming weeks.
Cunha has scored ten Premier League goals already this season – more than any Arsenal player currently – and would be a good fit for Arteta’s system.
Like Jesus, one of the Brazilian’s greatest attributes is his ability to dribble and carry the ball, and thus the Gunners would be replacing this asset in their forward line.
Also capable of being deployed in wide areas, Arsenal should certainly be looking to test Wolves’ resolve.
Benjamin Sesko
Arsenal continue to be linked to Benjamin Sesko, after failing to acquire him in the summer, and now could be the time to pull the trigger and aggressively pursue the Slovenian.
Managing seven Bundesliga goals this term, Sesko has the right mix of physical attributes to cope with the robustness of the Premier League, and his clean ball-striking would be a unique skill in the North Londoners’ squad.
RB Leipzig may be tempted to cash in as they close in on a deal for AC Milan’s Noah Okafor.
Sesko certainly isn’t the finished product, but at 21 he has plenty of room to develop, and is good enough to provide Havertz with some respite between now and the end of the season.
Dusan Vlahovic
Similarly to Sesko, Dusan Vlahovic is a long-term target for the Gunners, and this could be the moment to convert this interest into a deal with Juventus.
Arsenal have submitted a bid for Vlahovic, which signals that a move could already be in the pipeline.
The Serbian has improved tenfold since Arteta was first intent on bringing him to the Emirates, back in the striker’s Fiorentina days, netting 16 Serie A goals last season and seven thus far this time around.
Vlahovic shares similarities to Sesko’s physical style with clean and powerful ball-striking, but offers a significantly more polished all-round game than his Eastern European counterpart.
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