Forget Toney! Liverpool flop is Arsenal's 'best candidate' in striker search

Tom Weber

• Updated: 30 Dec 2023 14:23 GMT
• 3 min read

Arsenal have been urged to forget about Ivan Toney and sign Dominic Solanke instead.

The Gunners are in the market for a striker and Ivan Toney has been one of the players most prominently linked with Mikel Arteta's side. However, a January deal is becoming increasingly unlikely, it seems.

Not only does Thomas Frank, Brentford's coach, not want to lose his star striker - despite him having not played so far this term due to his ban - but Arsenal have also recently rebuffed Crystal Palace's approach for Eddie Nketiah, stating that he is not for sale. Without the Nketiah money, it is difficult to image the Gunners being able to match Brentford's Toney demands.

According to former Premier League striker Chris Sutton, this is not necessarily a bad thing. He does not believe that Toney is the Gunners' best option for January given that he has not played a game since last season. Instead, Arsenal should sign in-form Bournemouth man Dominic Solanke.

What did Sutton say?

Writing for BBC Sport, Sutton voiced his belief that the former Liverpool and Chelsea man would be a better option for the title-chasing Gunners. "There's been plenty of talk already about how manager Mikel Arteta needs to sign another striker in January."

"Brentford's Ivan Toney has been linked for a while, but he has not played for months because of his suspension. He will have been training, but how much match sharpness does he have?"

"Arsenal are trying to win the title, so they haven't got time to wait for anyone to get up to speed,' he added. If we are looking at the names that are supposedly within their grasp, Bournemouth's Dominic Solanke stands out as the best candidate."

Solanke has scored 12 goals in 18 games this term, five of which have come in his last four outings.