Sports

Gabriel Jesus’ ACL injury: Top 5 strikers Arsenal can sign to fix their striking woes

admin
Gabriel Jesus’ ACL injury: Top 5 strikers Arsenal can sign to fix their striking woes
Gabriel Jesus’ ACL injury: Top 5 strikers Arsenal can sign to fix their striking woes

New Delhi: Arsenal have been hit with an injury bug recently with several of their first team stars ruled out with an injury. The Gunners are missing Riccardo Calafiori, Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu in defense through various injuries while their attack has also taken a hit recently with three of their major attacking outlets getting injured in a span of a few days. The club were already dealing with Bukayo Saka’s injury layoff when Gabriel Jesus hit form.

His burst of form remained short lived though as the Brazilian went off injured in the FA Cup defeat to Manchester United. Earlier in the year, youngster Ethan Nwaneri had also been ruled out for a while due to injury, adding concerns in Arsenal’s striking department. The club are short on strikers following Jesus’ ACL injury which sees him miss the rest of the season and that could impact the club in the title race.

They still have Kai Havertz up front at the club but the German is not a natural striker and misses plenty of chances. His lack of finishing ability in front of goal almost cost the Gunners their slender win against Ipswich recently and he was also guilty of missing tones of chances in recent cup defeats to Manchester United and Newcastle. These displays indicate that Mikel Arteta’s side are in desperate need of a striker and these are the five names that Arsenal can target in this window.

Note: Arsenal have being linked with names like Alexander Isak, Viktor Gyokeres, and Benjamin Sesko but signing them in January isn’t a realistic shout so the potential signings are only those that are feasible at this time. 

5) Igor Jesus

Arsenal can look to go for a like to like replacement with this option, replacing one Brazilian named Jesus with another Brazilian named Jesus. Botafogo’s Igor Jesus is coming off the back of a wonderful season with the Brazilian club, guiding them to a league and Copa Libertadores double. He was in good form for the club in the recently concluded Brazilian Serie A and can also play on the left, offering Arsenal cover on the wing as well.

Jesus contributed to five goals in just six games for Botafogo during the Copa Libertadores win and also contributed to eight goals in the Serie A. Before joining the club, he had a good 2023/24 for UAE side Al Ahli, contributing to 17 goals in 19 games. He might not be the most glamorous option for the club, but wouldn’t cost a bomb and given that it is the off-season for the Brazilian Serie A, Botafogo might be more open to letting him go in this window.

4) Santiago Gimenez

Mexican striker Santiago Gimenez has been making waves in the Eredivisie for a while now after first breaking through under current Liverpool boss, Arne Slot. He was nurtured by Slot during their time together at Feyenoord and scored 49 goals in the two seasons they were together at the club. Since Slot left, Gimenez has continued his impressive form for his side with him getting 16 goal contributions in 16 games this season.

At 23, he still has a lot of room to grow in his career and could do so while playing under Mikel Arteta if the Gunners decided to snap him up. He almost moved to the Premier League in the summer before rejecting a move to Nottingham Forest but could make a move this time if a club like Arsenal come calling. He would be a cheaper alternative to the other names on their list and the Gunners can get Gimenez for this season before going for one of their long term targets in the summer.

3) Alexander Sorloth

Ever since leaving Crystal Palace, Alexander Sorloth has been a man reborn, barring a failed spell at RB Leipzig. Following a 40-goal contribution season with Trabzanspor in 2019/20, he moved to Leipzig where he didn’t fit into their style of play but has been killing it since moving to La Liga. Impressive performances for Real Sociedad earned him a move to Villareal last season where he scored 23 goals in the league, prompting Atletico Madrid to come calling this summer and he’s continued his impressive scoring form for Diego Simeone’s side

However, the arrival of Julian Alvarez in the summer and the already existing attacking options in Antoine Griezmann and Angel Correa, he’s found game time hard to come by. He’s scored 10 goals all season but averages only 44 minutes per game in his 27 appearances. He can thrive at Arsenal and be the target man that Oliver Giroud used to be at the club and Arteta could have national team teammate Martin Odegaard to attract the Norwegian at the club. He would be an excellent addition to Arsenal’s squad, won’t cost a lot of money and at 29, he could be a good mentor for anyone younger Arsenal sign in the summer.

2) Victor Osimhen

Galatasaray’s on loan forward Victor Osimhen has been making his mark in Turkey since moving there in the summer. The Nigerian was slated to move to the Premier League after a falling out at Napoli and almost joined Chelsea on deadline day before moving to the Turkish Giants. It’s widely known that Osimhen’s talents surpass the level of the Turkish league and he’d be more suited to a league like the Premier League, where the best compete. If the Gunners are looking for a cheap, short term fix in this window, getting Osimhen on a loan would be a smart move to make.

The 26-year-old has scored 10 and assisted four in 13 appearances in the Super Lig and has contributed to five goals in four UEFA Europa League games as well. He has a break clause in his loan agreement with Gala and if Arsenal want to make a move for the Nigerian, Gala can’t refuse to let the striker go. Osimhen is the kind of forward that Arsenal need and his clinical ability in front of goal can turn Arsenal into serious title contenders. Getting him on loan this season even with an option to buy at the end of the season would be a perfect move for Arsenal to make.

1) Jonathan David

The best deal, both in the financial and on-field aspect that Arsenal can make in this window is stealing a move on other clubs by getting in Lille’s Jonathan David. The Canadian striker has been on fire since making his move to Lille and hasn’t stopped for a single season. He finished 2024 with the fourth most goal contributions and has already achieved 23 goal contributions in 29 games this season. He is the joint-top scorer in Ligue 1 this season and at 25, he still has plenty of years to offer for any club that he signs for.

He fits into Arsenal’s style of play well and with only six months available on his contract, the Gunners can look to land him on a cut price deal. He’s already made it clear that he won’t be signing an extension and Lille might be tempted into selling the player in this window rather than losing him out for free in the summer. Plenty of clubs will be vying for his signature in the summer as he’d be available for free, and Arsenal should use this opportunity to sign the player for a relatively cheaper fee, similar to what Real Madrid did with Eduardo Camavinga.

 Arsenal’s Brazilian striker Gabriel Jesus seemed to be returning to form after a scoring six goals in his last seven games but an ACL injury has ruled him out for the rest of the season prompting Arsenal to target a new striker.  Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today

Related Posts