Arsenal urged to make surprise signing to replace Aubameyang, Lacazette Arsenal have been urged to target Burnley striker Chris Wood if they need to find a replacement for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang or Alexandre Lacazette this summer. The future of both players was being debated before the season was postponed, and sports writer and Gunners fan Matt Scott believes Wood would be a great signing at The Emirates and could be the new Olivier Giroud. Aubameyang’s contract expires in June 2021, and there have been plenty of rumours of a possible move away from the club before then – with Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Barcelona all showing an interest. Lacazette’s deal has a little longer to run, expiring in June 2022, but there have been some suggestions that Mikel Arteta should cash in on the 28-year-old as he looks to rebuild his squad this summer. Arsenal have been looking to bring in younger talent of late, with the likes of Nicolas Pepe, William Saliba and Kieran Tierney all arriving over the past year. But Scott believes there is an under-appreciated player already in the Premier League who could be a perfect fit in north London. He told talkSPORT’s Hawksbee and Jacobs: “If Arsenal do lose Aubameyang or Lacazette, then Eddie Nketiah and Gabriel Martinelli, great as they look, are still too raw at the age they are to be leading the line for a club like Arsenal. “So they are going to have to look at another centre forward and, believe it or not, I believe it should be Chris Wood! “People are not going to like it, but I’ll tell you why I think so. “It’s my view that Arsenal are missing Olivier Giroud. He always gave them another way of playing. “In his prime he was very, very good for Arsenal and since he’s come back into the Chelsea team this season he’s been terrific. “Giroud’s minutes-per-goal ratio in his last few seasons at Arsenal was unbelievably good, he’s a real finisher and I think you’ve got one in Chris Wood at Burnley as well. “The first thing you have to say about Arsenal generally is they are absolutely the worst team in the air in the whole Premier League. It’s astonishing how bad they are. “Shkodran Mustafi apart, they are all absolute flowers when the ball is fizzed in. “It’s fair to say Nketiah has showed a bit of early promise in heading the ball, but he’s only 5ft 9in so you can’t really expect him to be the target man I think Arsenal need to add that other option. “Wood is an absolute identikit to Giroud, in football terms. He’s not necessarily the quickest, but I think he’s quicker than Giroud. “He’s got a chance conversion rate of 1 in every 4.8 [chances], and when you compare that to 1 in every 6.5 for Lacazette, he’s a finisher. “And that, of course, is also him playing for Burnley and not with the creative players there are in the Arsenal team. “I think you can’t scoff at what a good goalscorer Chris Wood is.” Meanwhile, Paul Merson has taken Manchester United to the cleaners after aiming at a jibe at the Red Devils over their apparent interest in signing Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Read more… The post Arsenal urged to make surprise signing to replace Aubameyang, Lacazette appeared first on teamtalk.com.

Arsenal have been urged to target Burnley striker Chris Wood if they need to find a replacement for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang or Alexandre Lacazette this summer.

The future of both players was being debated before the season was postponed, and sports writer and Gunners fan Matt Scott believes Wood would be a great signing at The Emirates and could be the new Olivier Giroud.

Aubameyang’s contract expires in June 2021, and there have been plenty of rumours of a possible move away from the club before then – with Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Barcelona all showing an interest.

Lacazette’s deal has a little longer to run, expiring in June 2022, but there have been some suggestions that Mikel Arteta should cash in on the 28-year-old as he looks to rebuild his squad this summer.

Arsenal have been looking to bring in younger talent of late, with the likes of Nicolas Pepe, William Saliba and Kieran Tierney all arriving over the past year.

But Scott believes there is an under-appreciated player already in the Premier League who could be a perfect fit in north London.

He told talkSPORT’s Hawksbee and Jacobs: “If Arsenal do lose Aubameyang or Lacazette, then Eddie Nketiah and Gabriel Martinelli, great as they look, are still too raw at the age they are to be leading the line for a club like Arsenal.

“So they are going to have to look at another centre forward and, believe it or not, I believe it should be Chris Wood!

“People are not going to like it, but I’ll tell you why I think so.

“It’s my view that Arsenal are missing Olivier Giroud. He always gave them another way of playing.

“In his prime he was very, very good for Arsenal and since he’s come back into the Chelsea team this season he’s been terrific.

“Giroud’s minutes-per-goal ratio in his last few seasons at Arsenal was unbelievably good, he’s a real finisher and I think you’ve got one in Chris Wood at Burnley as well.

“The first thing you have to say about Arsenal generally is they are absolutely the worst team in the air in the whole Premier League. It’s astonishing how bad they are.

“Shkodran Mustafi apart, they are all absolute flowers when the ball is fizzed in.

 

 

“It’s fair to say Nketiah has showed a bit of early promise in heading the ball, but he’s only 5ft 9in so you can’t really expect him to be the target man I think Arsenal need to add that other option.

“Wood is an absolute identikit to Giroud, in football terms. He’s not necessarily the quickest, but I think he’s quicker than Giroud.

“He’s got a chance conversion rate of 1 in every 4.8 [chances], and when you compare that to 1 in every 6.5 for Lacazette, he’s a finisher.

“And that, of course, is also him playing for Burnley and not with the creative players there are in the Arsenal team.

“I think you can’t scoff at what a good goalscorer Chris Wood is.”

Meanwhile, Paul Merson has taken Manchester United to the cleaners after aiming at a jibe at the Red Devils over their apparent interest in signing Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Read more…

 

 

The post Arsenal urged to make surprise signing to replace Aubameyang, Lacazette appeared first on teamtalk.com.

Robert McCarthy