The Gunners head coach has been handed a potential game-changer to help him conquer Liverpool and Manchester City with a Super Eagles striker identified as the key to unlocking success.
Arsenal legend Robert Pires has urged his former club to sign a ‘real striker’ to help them compete with Premier League rivals Liverpool and Manchester City.
The Gunners have gone five years without a major trophy, and Pires believes adding a proven goalscorer could be the key to ending that drought.
Arsenal have finished as runners-up to Manchester City in the last two campaigns, and this season, they are Liverpool’s closest competitors, though they trail by six points and have played a game more.
Speaking to Mail Sport at a PlayStation crossover event in Paris, Pires said: "In my opinion, Arsenal need a real striker because if they want to win some games, they need this like Liverpool and Manchester City have.
“Of course, I respect a lot the decisions of Mikel Arteta and Arsenal, but in my time, I used to play with Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, and Nwankwo Kanu, so we had three real strikers. It was easy sometimes to score goals. But maybe this is the new football, so we have to adapt the philosophy".
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Osimhen: The perfect fit for Arsenal
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When asked who Arsenal should target, Pires was unequivocal in his response: "Victor Osimhen. He has a good profile to play for Arsenal and the players such as Gabriel Martinelli, Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz, and Bukayo Saka.
“But I'm not the owner or manager—I'm just an Arsenal fan who will always support them. If we can bring in one player, though, it'd have to be Osimhen".
Osimhen, currently on loan at Galatasaray from Napoli, has scored 12 goals in 15 Turkish Super Lig appearances, including six in his last seven matches, the latest of which was a spot kick against Konyaspor.
Across all competitions, he has netted 16 times in 20 games, which has brought him praise from several quarters.
Pires, who won four major trophies with Arsenal and was part of the iconic 2003-04 Invincibles squad, believes Osimhen’s profile makes him the ideal candidate to bolster Arsenal’s attack.