With Arsenal today confirmed to be in talks with Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain, the club look set to sign a top class centre forward this summer. We cast our eye over the top five options on the transfer market.
Arsenal have been linked with a plethora of strikers this summer, as they bid to boost their misfiring forward line.
The sale of Robin Van Persie to Manchester United in summer 2012 resulted in the loss of 30 Premier League goals from the side, but the Gunners compensated by spreading the goals throughout the team.
New signings Santi Cazorla, Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud managed 34 top flight goals between them, and Theo Walcott also had his best ever season in terms of scoring return, with 14 strikes in the Premier League.
However, although Arsenal managed three more points than the previous season in which they came third, they rarely appeared close to challenging for the title, and a top goalscorer appears vital to helping them finally overcome that trophy drought.
Arsene Wenger has been linked with a plethora of top quality centre forward signings this summer in order to provide the north London club with a cutting edge up front, and we ran the rule over the main contenders.
Stevan Jovetic (Fiorentina)
Few expected Fiorentina star Stevan Jovetic to be the most talked about name in the transfer window thus far, but the Montenegrin has found himself a man in demand.
Chelsea and Juventus join Arsenal in their interest in the 23 year-old, who is capable of playing a variety of roles across the attacking line.
At Arsenal, Jovetic would likely start either up front or on the left wing cutting inside, and his creativity and shooting prowess could come to the fore in each.
His versatility perhaps explains why he was less prolific than many of the other names on this list – Jovetic only scored 13 goals in Serie A all season, and is not the orthodox forward that the Gunners probably require.
His strength lies in his build up play, with only three players creating more clear cut chances in Italy all season.
According to the Daily Mirror though, Arsenal’s interest in Jovetic has cooled, with more regular goalscorers seemingly overtaking him in the pecking order.
Originally posted on Fanatix.
Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)
Wayne Rooney is an intriguing option for Arsenal, with the Manchester United forward having cropped up repeatedly in newspaper reports in the last month or so after submitting a transfer request to leave Old Trafford.
It is the second time that the 27 year-old has taken such steps, having previously requested to leave the Red Devils in 2010, and many of the club’s fans now appear to have lost patience with their former idol.
Should he leave Old Trafford though, Rooney will have plenty of suitors, and Arsenal may well be amongst those.
“We could do that, we could do more than that,” said Gunners chief executive Ivan Gazidis when asked specifically about Rooney this week.
“We have a certain amount which we’ve held in reserve and we also have new revenue streams coming on board. All of these things mean we can do some things which would excite you. We can think about all kinds of things.”
Rooney’s 197 goals in 400 Manchester United appearances illustrates a goals-to-games ratio comparable with some of the greatest players in football, and the England international could be the perfect balance between poaching striker and link player between midfield and attack, having played both roles with aplomb at different stages of his career.
His reported £200,000 per week salary would throw the famously socialist Arsenal wage structure out the window though, and Arsene Wenger may be reluctant to risk upsetting the rest of his squad as a result.
David Villa (FC Barcelona)
FC Barcelona forward David Villa was regularly linked with a move to Arsenal in the January transfer window, with the Spain international looking set to depart the club this summer.
Like former Gunner Cesc Fabregas, Villa has found his place in the starting line-up at Camp Nou called into question, and Barca’s signing of Neymar from Santos means that he will likely lose his place on the left hand side of Los Cules’ attack.
Villa’s pedigree is in little doubt. He is the Spanish national team’s highest ever goalscorer, and has lifted the FIFA World Cup and UEFA European Championship trophies with his country. He has also won almost everything there is to win at the top level in club football, scoring a fantastic goal in the UEFA Champions League final against Manchester United in 2011 at Wembley Stadium.
However, the clear argument against Villa is his age, and the Spaniard will turn 32 midway through the coming season. The economist in Arsene Wenger may well think twice about spending a large sum of money on a player clearly beyond his peak, even if the player in question is a goalscorer of Villa’s quality.
Christian Benteke (Aston Villa)
Aston Villa’s Christian Benteke had a fine first season in the Premier League, and at 22 years of age has plenty of time to grow and improve as a player. It is little surprise to see him linked with Arsenal.
His 19 Premier League goals were five more than any Arsenal player managed in the top flight, and he also lived up to the horrible cliche of having a ‘good touch for a big man,’ with his backheel against Liverpool to set up Andreas Weimann’s goal a great example of both his technique, imagination and creativity.
However, Benteke has only had one such successful campaign, and he has not proven that he is anything but a one season wonder yet. As harsh as that sounds, there have been plenty of other players who have struggled similarly after great debut seasons in the Premier League – strikers such as Marcus Stewart or Roque Santa Cruz are typical examples.
Benteke was not thought of particularly highly in Belgium before this season, and a step up to a UEFA Champions League club may come too soon for him this summer.
Gonzalo Higuain (Real Madrid)
Gonzalo Higuain could be the ultimate answer to Arsenal’s profligacy up front, and the latest on the 25 year-old signing for the north London outfit can be found here.
The Argentina international is allowed to leave Real Madrid this summer, and his asking price of £20 million and wages of £130,000 per week are within the Gunners’ budget.
His goal record is also phenomenal.
Despite David Villa’s wonderful trophy pedigree, no player has scored more goals in La Liga than Higuain since the beginning of the 2007-2008 season apart from – who else? – Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
As well as a fine finishing record, Higuain has successfully improved his build up play, and regularly drops deep and moves wide to gain space both for himself and his team-mates.
Arsenal’s midfield runners could benefit from such rotation of movement, with Santi Cazorla, Theo Walcott, Lukas Podolski and Jack Wilshere all regular runners beyond the opposition defensive line.
With Arsene Wenger already in talks with both the forward and his agent and father Jorge Higuain, this looks the most likely of all the prospective striker signings.
Originally posted on Fanatix.