Arteta told the transfer mistake that 'predictable' Arsenal will regret

6 Sept 2024 07:10 BST
3 min read

Arsenal legend Emmanuel Petit believes that the Gunners could come up short in the Premier League title race because of their failure to strengthen in one particular area during the summer transfer window.

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Mikel Arteta’s side took the Premier League to the final day of 2023/24 but came up just short of Manchester City.

The goal is to overhaul Pep Guardiola’s outfit this time around, but while Arsenal have started with promise, 1998 World Cup winner Petit believes that they could be “predictable” in one area the manager had wished to strengthen.

“They’re missing presence up front,” Petit told Squawka. “Kai Havertz always tries to come deeper in midfield to link up with the midfield players, sometimes he’s asking for the ball behind the defenders. But that’s not enough. This is not his natural capacity.

“So they need someone up front, a typical striker that can convert chances. You get the feeling sometimes that Arsenal are predictable for the opponents when they are not playing well. So they need a plan B and at the moment they don’t have one.”

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Arsenal had looked at signing a variety of No.9s in the summer, from Victor Osimhen of Napoli to Viktor Gyokeres of Sporting CP and RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko. Quoted transfer fees of over €100 million for each, the Gunners decided not to move.

When Petit was asked if Arteta might regret missing out on one of these pure centre-forwards, he replied: “Yes, definitely. They signed Raheem Sterling, they signed Mikel Moreno, they signed Riccardo Calafiori and they are good signings. And I’m very happy with Kai Havertz’s start to the season so far, I think he’s doing well. But we saw on Saturday that Arteta and Arsenal need a plan B up front.

© IMAGO - Viktor Gyokeres of Sporting CP had been a priority for Arsenal this summer

“I had the feeling after the game that Arsenal still play the same way all the time. When they are good on the pitch it’s enough to beat the opponent, but when they are not good individually, and it happened with Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard also not playing well, that’s not enough to beat the opponent.”

Arsenal have won two of their three Premier League fixtures to date in 2024/25 and return after the international date with a blockbuster North London Derby clash against Tottenham on 15 September.

Read more about: Premier League, Arsenal, Benjamin Sesko, Kai Havertz, Viktor Gyökeres