Arsenal FC need a world class striker in their ranks to compete with Chelsea FC and Manchester City for the Premier League title. The Gunners have had a dormant transfer window compared to some of the other top clubs.
Manchester City have signed Raheem Sterling, Fabian Delph, Nicolas Otamendi, Patrick Roberts and Enes Unal. Manchester United have signed five first team players in Morgan Schneiderlin, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Matteo Darmian, Memphis Depay and Sergio Romero.
Chelsea FC had a slow start to both the Premier League and the transfer window have splashed the cash on Ghanaian left-back Abdul Baba Rahman and Spanish winger Pedro. The Blues had previously signed Asmir Begovic to replace Petr Cech.
Arsenal FC’s only business so far this summer has been the recruitment of Petr Cech from Chelsea FC in a A?10 million deal and fans have been crying for Arsene Wenger to spend the huge amount of cash sitting in the bank to recruit a top striker and an equally good defensive midfielder.
Arsenal FC’s reported pursuit of Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema came to an end yesterday when the Frenchman took to Twitter to dismiss speculation regarding a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu. With Benzema ruled out of the race, we take a look at the three players that the Gunners could target to reduce the goal scoring burden on Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sanchez.
1. Marco Reus
The German forward can be used as a wide forward as well as a centre forward and could bring blistering pace to the Gunners attack, something they lack when Giroud is deployed as the striker. With Borussia Dortmund having missed out on a place in the Champions League, the star striker could be persuaded to move away from Signal Iduna Park.
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Arsenal FC lack a striker capable of lingering around the shoulder of the last defender, ready to make darting runs behind the defence, latching on to brilliant through balls from Mesut Ozil and company. The 26-year-old is brilliant at controlling the ball and can finish with both his feet.
Reus is also excellent at creating space for his teammates and exploits space when he is afforded with it. The German attacker would slot in perfectly in an Arsenal FC front three with Alexis Sanchez and Theo Walcott. The trio could put their pace to lethal use running riot in England and in Europe. Reus’ idol Tomas Rosicky also plays for Arsenal FC, having made the move from Borussia Dortmund to North London in 2006.
2. Zlatan Ibrahimovic
At 33, the Swedish striker is heading into the twilight of his career. However, age does not seem to have an effect on his game although it has taken a toll on his body. The mercurial striker has amassed 106 goals in 126 appearances for Paris Saint-Germain in the last three years and while competition in Ligue 1 is definitely inferior to the English Premier League, Ibrahimovic is still capable of scoring truly breathtaking goals.
The Swede is not the most mobile of strikers; however, his finishing is comparable to none and with a midfield as capable as Arsenal FC’s behind him, the striker could help the Gunners to their first league title in 11 years. Zlatan definitely does not provide a long term solution to the North London outfit’s need for a prolific goalscorer, but he does indeed present with a genuine short term solution. He was close to signing for the Gunners once and maybe it’s about time he makes the move to English shores.
3. Robert Lewandowski
The Polish striker moved to Bayern Munich from Borussia Dortmund only last summer and is one of the few strikers in the top four league to score 25+ goals in each of the last four seasons. Lewandowski is an excellent finisher and can drop deep to help the team drive forward.
The 27-year-old is capable of scoring long-range strikes and is also a potent dribbler. The former Borussia Dortmund man famously hit four past Real Madrid in a Champions League semi-final clash at the Westfalenstadion, single-handedly guiding his team to the finals of the elite competition where they eventually lost to Bayern Munich.
Despite standing at 6 feet, Lewandowski is not that prolific with his head and likes the ball at his feet. The Polish striker had been benched by Pep Guardiola in the season opener against Hoffernheim in favour of Mario Gotze; however, Lewandowski came on to hit the winner in the 90th minute. If Arsene Wenger is able to prize away the striker from Allianz Arena, the Gunners may well become the team to beat in England this season.