Top five strikers Arsenal should target in summer 2024

Published at :April 17, 2024 at 2:07 PM

Modified at :April 17, 2024 at 2:07 PM

(Courtesy : Arsenal)

The Gunners will be looking to add more firepower to their frontline

At the point of writing, we see Arsenal away on a trip to Germany. They will be facing FC Bayern Munich in the second leg of the quarter-finals in the UEFA Champions League. The first leg was played at the Emirates Stadium that resulted in a 2-2 draw which keeps the contest still wide open. A win will see the Gunners make it to the semi-finals for the first time since the 2008-09 season.

In the Premier League, we saw them fail to score even a goal against Aston Villa. A 2-0 defeat meant losing the top spot further to Manchester City. Although Mikel Arteta’s men have the best defence in the league which has just conceded 26 goals after 32 games, they just can’t outscore City. Last season even 88 goals weren’t enough to help them land the PL title. With six more games to go this season, the Gunners’ 75 goals are still falling a goal short of Pep Guardiola’s team.

It is not like Arsenal aren’t scoring. They are and in good numbers. Their current strikers Gabriel Jesus and Eddie Nketiah, haven’t really met the standards and numbers of what a decent strikers goal tally looks like in a season. A fresh face in the forward line that can damage an opponent’s goal at will might prove to be the biggest addition of the summer.

Here’s a five-player shortlist that sporting director Edu Gaspar and head coach Mikel Arteta should have a close look at before striker shopping come the summer of 2024.

5. Ivan Toney (Brentford)

Once after winning a game of football against Arsenal, Ivan Toney tweeted, “Nice kickabout with the boys”. Although that thing was of the past like in August 2021, Toney still has the qualities to do the damage both on and off the pitch.

But how about he does it all while wearing the kits of the Gunners? The 28-year-old is nearing the latter stages of his career and won’t think twice about making a move to a bigger club. Mikel Arteta’s team has been a long-time follower of the athlete’s goal-scoring prowess and this summer just could be the right time to link up.

4. Victor Osimhen (SSC Napoli)

This specific Nigerian forward won’t be coming on a cheap though. In December 2023, Victor Osimhen put pen to paper on a contract extension deal with Napoli. The deal also has a £112 million release clause. This means instead of wasting energy with negotiations with the parent club, the buying team can bypass it just by paying the mammoth sum. Although the player should be further willing to move.

Just last season, Osimhen’s 26 goals and 5 assists helped massively in winning the Serie A title for Gli Azzurri. This season too the marksman is sharp in front of the net. He is the joint-third top scorer with 13 goals. Osimhen is still 25 and could prove to be a worthy long-term investment.

3. Benjamin Šeško (RB Leipzig)

In just the last summer, Benjamin Šeško moved from Red Bull Salzburg to join the Bundesliga outfit RB Leipzig. Šeško isn’t even in the top five scorers list for the German league this season but definitely worth dealing with. The Slovenian centre forward is just 20 years old and only has room for improvement.

After 26 league games in the German top tier, Leipzig’s number 30 has scored 9 goals. He has also made 2 assists in the same period. A worthy asset to add and also who won’t cost a ton of fee like Osimhen. Reportedly per ESPN, his release clause is just €50 million.

2. Santiago Giménez (Feyenoord)

Add 2 years to the age of Šeško and shift your focus to the Eredivisie league for a while. The striker already has 21 goals in the Netherlands’ first-tier football league competition. Found him? He goes by the name of Santiago Giménez.

The left-footed forward is a Mexican international as well and has been a part of the Dutch club since July 2022. Having made 29 league appearances, Giménez has managed to score 21 goals while also providing 5 assists. And if anyone has doubts regarding whether a striker from Eredivisie moving to the PL will make it, we might suggest the profile of ‘Luis Suárez‘. Suárez in his days rocked the English first tier with Liverpool after moving from AFC Ajax.

1. Viktor Gyökeres (Sporting CP)

There always remains a concern whether a particular player will make it in one country as he did in the former pitches of another. Giménez, Šeško and Osimhen have never experienced what it’s like to play regularly on English soil against English sides. But a certain 25-year-old solves this problem perfectly.

Surely Arsenal won’t want a striker to come in and adjust slowly given they are now a regular challenger for the Premier League title plus have ambitions in Europe. So this mighty forward can be a solution benefitting all parties involved. We are talking about Viktor Gyökeres.

After three years on English grounds playing for the likes of Brighton & Hove Albion, Swansea City and Coventry City, Gyökeres moved to Portugal to join Sporting CP in the summer of 2023. He is the current Liga Portugal top scorer with 22 goals. And his 10 assists also shouldn’t go in vain in attracting quality interest from top clubs across Europe.

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