Everything you need to know about the striker situation
Arsenal, Alexandre Lacazette, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Photo by Harriet Lander/Copa/Getty Images)
Arsenal’s striker situation is a well-kept mess, with opportunities and questions galore. So let’s sum it all up with all you need to know.
The position of the most star power at Arsenal is far and away the attack, which is why it seems almost silly to be having to dissect the situation there so much, but as we’ve learned time and time again, star power does not always translate… although in this situation it kind of does for the most part.
With the transfer window fast approaching, it’s never too soon to dig into the situation in its entirety, just so we’re all on the same page. So let’s start at the top, with Pierre Emerick Aubameyang.
Aubameyang is also the biggest question mark of the bunch. At 31-years-old and with just one year left on his contract, something has to happen this year. Most reports agree that while he wants to stay, he’s seeking a three-year deal, while the club only wants to give him two.
Given that a three-year deal would take him to 34, which is borderline decrepit for a striker, you can see the club’s point of view.
If we decide to sell now, however, the return could be somewhere in the region of £50m, which would be a massive boost that could be reinvested in a big way. It’s just a matter of weighing the pros and cons, because give him another deal and his value will only go down with each passing year.
Then there’s Alexandre Lacazette, the second biggest question mark for all different reasons. For him, we have to ask if we want to keep him. With two years left on his deal and at just 29-years-old, his value will absolutely never be higher, especially given the inconsistencies we’ve seen from him. If you wait another year, his value could halve itself and if we give him a new contract, we’re keeping him until he’s 32-33 years old, which makes his value a nonfactor, we’d essentially be forfeiting all future value in the hopes that he can continue to grow. But at 29, will he?
Lastly, Eddie Nketiah. Freshly 21, Nketiah also has just two years left on his current contract, but it’s realistic to think that the Gunners will be looking to extend that, especially if they decide to let one or the other senior striker go.
Nketiah should not be at any risk of being sold this summer. His value has nowhere to go but up, and Mikel Arteta is clearly high enough on the youngster to keep him around.
Aside from that, the two names to know are Luka Jovic and Odsonne Edouard. Both have been extensively linked to the Gunners, with Edouard looking like an Aubameyang replacement and Jovic looking like a Lacazette replacement.
Now that I’ve broken it all down, it doesn’t seem that complex at all, actually. Five names to know, that’s it.
