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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta urged not to take Eddie Nketiah gamble and to sign £80m striker
ARSENAL have been told to spend big this summer.
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Dean Saunders has warned Arsenal that Eddie Nketiah is not ready to lead the line for the Gunners and has urged them to splash the cash on a striker this summer. Nketiah is currently out of contract at the end of the month but is expected to sign an extension to remain at the Emirates.
Nketiah took over from Alexandre Lacazette, who joined Lyon this month, as Arsenal’s first-choice striker at the end of the season but former Liverpool striker Saunders does not believe he should continue to lead the line for Mikel Arteta’s side next season. “He got a chance by default,” the former Wales international told talkSPORT. “He took it and you have to say, he has shown what he can do but playing for Arsenal you have got to be one of the best players in the world.
“He got his chance because Arteta has put his foot down on the culture at Arsenal, he is trying to build the club from the bottom up.
“Aubameyang kept breaking the rules and undermining him every day, he has gone to the board and said ‘if this keeps happening I can’t manage the club the way you want me to’, so the sacrificial lamb was Aubameyang.
“That will pay dividends I believe in the long-term. He has now got the dressing room on his side, he has got the group raring to go.
“Next season if Arsenal sign the right striker, because they are going to need a £60/70/80million striker, Eddie has done well but he is not good enough to lead the line for Arsenal at the moment.”
Arsenal are set to confirm that Nketiah has signed a new long-term contract with the club in the coming days, despite the Gunners naming the forward on their list of summer departures. The England under-21 international scored five goals in eight Premier League games after making his first league start of the season away to Southampton in April.
Despite Nketiah’s new imminent contract, Arsenal have been linked with several strikers including Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus, Sassuolo’s Gianluca Scamacca and Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
A deal to take Jesus to the Emirates has been described as “quite close” by Darren Bent as the Brazilian is set to exit Manchester following the signing of Erling Haaland. The 25-year-old scored eight goals in 28 league appearances last season, prompting Pep Guardiola to open the chequebook for Haaland.
The Gunners have reportedly been told to increase their offer for Italy striker Scamacca by £8.5million as Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport claims that Arsenal have already had a bid turned down.