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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta told 'erratic' duo need upgrading in January transfer window
Arsenal are on a high after beating Manchester City on Sunday.
A review of Man Utd's draw with Arsenal in the WSL | Football Digest
Gary Neville believes that Arsenal will have a hard time winning the Premier League with Gabriel Jesus or Eddie Nketiah leading the line. Come January, Mikel Arteta could push for more firepower an attempt to pip Manchester City to the title, having fallen away late on in 2022/23.
The first phase of the season has been a positive one for the Gunners. After a hard-fought 1-0 win over City on Sunday, Arteta and co sit second in the table during the international break, level on points with local rivals Tottenham.
Crucially for Arsenal, City are two points behind, with Pep Guardiola dealt an early blow at the Emirates Stadium as he chases down a fourth consecutive league triumph. Despite the fact Arteta is firmly in the hunt this term, Neville has suggested that strikers Nketiah and Jesus may not be good enough to get the job done.
"There’s no doubt Nketiah and Jesus work their absolute socks off," the Manchester United legend told The Overlap's Stick to Football podcast.
"But in quality terms, I just found [against Tottenham and Man City], is that going to be enough to win Arsenal the league? That’s my only doubt is actually a centre-forward, because if they’d had a centre-forward – like if they had an [Erling] Haaland, if they had a [Harry] Kane – I’d be saying it’s Arsenal if they can keep [William] Saliba, Gabriel [Magalhaes] and [Declan] Rice fit.
"Honestly, I worry about Nketiah and Jesus. They’re erratic. They’re not wired to score goals naturally. Instinctively they don’t make the runs that you see goalscorers make.
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"They hold back, they’re always looking for the pull-back, they’re never getting across players. I just look at Jesus, he is quite erratic in front of goal. The work ethic of both of them is brilliant. I just question, at that level, can they win the league without another striker?"
Jesus was signed in a £45million deal from City last year, and the Brazilian spent a healthy chunk of his debut campaign in north London ruled out through injury. Despite putting up respectable numbers last term, he has only managed one Premier League goal so far in 2023/24.
Nketiah, meanwhile, came through Arsenal's academy system. And although he impressed standing in for Jesus last season, there are doubts as to whether he has the killer instinct to take the fight to City.
The Gunners splashed an eye-watering £65m on Kai Havertz during the summer. The German was frequently deployed up top during his time at Chelsea, but Arteta has so far used him primarily in midfield, leaving Jesus and Nketiah as the main options through the middle.