Arsene Wenger saw his most effective goal-scoring option leave for Man United last summer, much to the disarray of Gunners supporters who had seen another established first team player make an all too predictable exit, and the Arsenal boss opted to bring in Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podoslki to help make up for the loss of the Dutchman.
Though both players have made an impact in their first seasons at the North London club their combined total of 22 goals from 65 appearances, compared to Van Persie’s 25 goals from 34 Premier League starts for Man United, Wenger is still missing a truly prolific marksman to spearhead his attack.
Here are five possible summer signings who could help fill the void.
5. Wilfried Bony (Vitesse Arnhem)
For all the big names that have been linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium in recent months, Wayne Rooney being the most recent that turned heads, Arsene Wenger is better known for bringing in lesser known names for a fraction of the price some big-name stars would cost. With that in mind a move to Ivory Coast international Bony may be a possibility.
The powerful 24 year old forward has been a massive success since moving to the Dutch Eredivisie from Sparta Prague two and a half years ago, netting 12 goals in his first full season in Holland and an astonishing 31 top tier goals this term.
Strong running with a physique that could lend itself to life in the Premier League, Bony may be an option worth considering.
4. David Villa (Barcelona)
A known Wenger target and a player, though older than a usual Arsenal signing, who can still make an impact at the highest level.
Arsene Wenger had initially hoped to bring in the former Valencia man to the Emirates Stadium in January but Villa had opted to fight for a regular berth in Tito Vilanova’s first team set-up but has continued to find himself out of the Barcelona manager’s starting eleven and is now ready to leave the Nou Camp.
Villa has been handed just 14 La Liga starts thus far this season but has still managed to net nine goals whilst the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Pedro have tended to get the nod ahead of the 31 year old marksman.
David Villa is the Spanish national team’s record goal-scorer and the striker is keen to retain a spot in Vicente del Bosque’s plans and as such needs to be playing regularly, this is of course all the more relevant given the 2014 World Cup finals are around the corner.
A good short to mid-term solution.
3. Christian Benteke (Aston Villa)
The young Belgian has something that no one else on this list of possible signings has, a proven Premier League goal-scoring record.
The 22 year old has managed 19 top tier goals for an Aston Villa side who have been at the wrong end of the table for almost the entire campaign, imagine what he could do for a top four chasing side!
Paul Lambert won’t want to lose the former Racing Genk man but if Arsenal were to mount a concerted effort to lure the big striker then the Midlands side could struggle to retain his services.
Wouldn’t cost a fortune, perhaps no more than double the £7m Aston Villa spent on his services a year ago.
2. Stevan Jovetic (Fiorentina)
Depending on which report you read you may be led to believe that Arsenal have pretty much already sewn up the signing of the Montenegro international and the Fiorentina man could well be a perfect player to fill the Robin Van Persie void.
26 goals in 57 Serie A appearances in his last two seasons is a good, if not spectacular, return but the young attacker offers a lot more than just goals and has grown into a central striking role and could perhaps move up another gear if he were to make the move to the Premier League.
The 23 year old would appear to be the most likely of the five on this list to join Arsenal and appears to be a signing Gunners fans would welcome.
1. Gonzalo Higuain (Real Madrid)
Of the players named on this list the Argentine has the best top level goal-scoring record and the Real Madrid man has been strongly linked with a possible move to the Emirates Stadium side.
The 25 year old hasn’t had much of a look-in at the Bernabeu this term and has certainly played second fiddle to Karim Benzema since Jose Mourinho took over at the club, but that shouldn’t detract from the obvious ability the former River Plate striker possesses.
Higuain has netted a very impressive 105 La Liga goals from 178 appearances of which 58 were as sub.
The Real Madrid man is experienced but still has many good years in the tank and is perhaps the best available striker that Arsenal can realistically purchase to adequately fill the gap left by Robin Van Persie’s departure.