Arsenal wasted 3 of their 4 big chances in that 1-1 draw with Chelsea; had they been clinical, they could have easily won that game. That was yet another game, making it obvious Arsenal are a clinical striker away from hitting top gear.
Under Mikel Arteta, Arsenal’s attack has never truly clicked; while they occasionally find form, they often struggle to maintain it. The Spaniard has been able to get the best out of other positions, but he’s never gotten a consistent striker to lead his attack.
His striker recruits, Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz, have been anything but top goal scorers.
Yes, Arsenal has clearly struggled creatively in the final third, but even when they have had goal-scoring opportunities, they have struggled to convert them.
We speak of Kai Havertz’s work rate, but in the end, if he’s not scoring, then that’s an issue. We cannot rely solely on Kai Havertz’s all-action performance to secure wins when we are struggling to score; we have not won any of the last four league games due to our inability to outscore our opponents.
Micah Richards is the latest among those advocating for Arsenal to bravely enter the transfer market and secure a formidable striker. The former Premier League star turned pundit suggests Arsenal need to find themselves a striker who, in tough moments, can decide games for them. Richards appreciates what Havertz offers Arsenal and feels he is perfect for them but still feels they lack that killer striker who can decide games for them.
He believes the league title may be elusive to the North Londoners because they lack a #9 who can win it for them.
On The Rest Is Football Podcast, Micah admitted: “I think watching Arsenal now for what, the last two years where they could have gone and won the league, I really believe they need a striker now.
“I think [Kai] Havertz has done exceptionally well in terms of holding the ball up, the runs that he makes, linking up play, technically very good, worked out.
“He’s got all the attributes for what Arsenal want in terms of the way they want to press and the way they want to set up.
“But just sometimes, I think that they need a player; they need that striker’s instinct at times where you can go missing for 80 minutes of the game — but in the vital moment, you just get that goal.
“I just think that’s what Arsenal are missing.”
Based on these claims and the fact that Viktor Gyokeres, one of Arsenal’s top striker targets last summer, has scored 23 goals in 18 games this season, I believe he is the striker they need.
The Swedish goal machine is reportedly not interested in joining Manchester United to work with his former Sporting CP coach Ruben Amorim.
Arsenal should demonstrate their ambition to be the best by making an effort to recruit him. I can’t be convinced otherwise. Gyokeres could be the missing piece in Arteta’s attacking puzzle; he could really push Kai Havertz to his limits, which could finally see our Gunners firing from all cylinders and making a real challenge for the title.
Daniel O
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“Arsenal wasted 3 of their 4 big chances in that 1-1 draw with Chelsea; had they been clinical, they could have easily won that game.” Yes, it’s the quality of the finishing (as some of us have been saying for a while now).
Arsenal don’t have that “killer striker” to help put away some of the few chances that will occur against good opposition during a game. Liverpool has one, City has one and Wenger’s Arsenal teams always had one, but Arteta’s Arsenal doesn’t (Havertz is not a prolific scorer – never has been – although he has lots of other attributes).
It remains puzzling to me why it hasn’t been addressed, or at least a serious attempt made – there was a transfer window back in the summer, I recall.
Great insight Micah….some of us have been saying this for a couple of seasons now.
But nobody seems to listen … Still, we keep on trying.