Nobody will dispute the fact that Arsenal would have greatly benefited from a striker signing this summer. Now that his team boasts a formidable defence, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal could have posed a formidable threat to opponents if a clinical striker had also joined.
Victor Osimhen is one striker Arsenal could have recruited; the Nigerian international had a disappointing season last year, but he has shown himself a lethal attacker in recent years. Given that it was evident that Victor Osimhen was leaving Napoli; he’s not in Antonio Conte’s plans, and it looked they’d struggle to sell him due to lack of interest from other teams, why didn’t Arsenal take the initiative to bring him to North London?
The BBC have reported: Osimhen is at Napoli’s pre-season training camp but, according to Naples-based journalist Vincenzo Credendino, the Nigeria striker is only there to keep fit.
“He’s not playing friendly matches against other teams,” Credendino, who reports for CalcioNapoli24 TV, tells BBC Sport.
“Sometimes he doesn’t play the matches between the Napoli players. He just tries to keep himself in a good shape but he’s not risking anything because he’s very likely to leave Napoli sooner or later this summer.”
According to the latest rumours, Chelsea is now hoping to take him on loan as Romelu Lukaku leaves Stamford Bridge to join Napoli.
If Napoli are entertaining loan bids with no one willing to pay the players’ £110 million release clause, Arsenal should have sought to hijack the Chelsea swoop and sign the Serie A hotshot on loan.
However, if Mikel Arteta really wanted Osimhen, we’d be pushing for his signature, much like we did for Mudryk before he joined Chelsea. This lack of interest in Osimhen is a clear indication that the club has a different plan.
Fortunately, after Mikel Merino joins Real Sociedad, we’ll find out what that plan was. Could Arteta be eyeing a mysterious striker that isn’t Osimhen? We’ll have to wait and see.
Darren N
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