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Arsenal Can Be Redeemed With Mauro Icardi
By Josh Sippie
Arsenal have the rest of the season to go with just one striker. It’s rough. But there is a small chance that all can be amended for this summer with Mauro Icardi.
Arsenal Wenger holds to his opinion that Arsenal could not benefit from another striker. He said after the Southampton match that the team is creating chances, they just have to be more clinical. Which makes us wonder how exactly another striker would not be beneficial.
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Olivier Giroud just wasn’t having it. He had seven shots, three of which were on target and you could certainly say that he should have had a goal. Fraser Forster was just too good on the day.
When a striker is hitting a brick wall like that, it is not the worst thing in the world to get someone else in there. That is not an indication that Giroud has been poor, just an indication that the team is desperate for points and needs to try something new.
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Even if Danny Welbeck was healthy, Arsenal’s options would be limited to him and Walcott, neither of whom have a penchant for scoring goals. It is not the best situation to be in. Giroud or bust, that’s the name of the game.
Wenger had a chance to rectify this situation in the winter. There were three strikers that were available: Alexandre Pato, Aleksandr Kokorin and Charlie Austin. All were under £10m and the latter two were just £4m each. But Wenger passed.
I understand the faith in Giroud. It absolutely makes sense. Giroud is a crucial piece of this offense and the assessment that Arsenal do not need that ‘£40m striker’ is spot on. Giroud is the No. 1 guy. But that does not mean the team is set with just their one guy.
All three of the options Wenger passed on have a proven goal-scoring resume and sure, there would have been some risk involved. Every signing has risk. But we saw what Charlie Austin did against Manchester United. He could have done the same against his current club had Arsenal opted for him.
When Giroud is on point, everyone is happy and Wenger feels justified. But that shouldn’t be the case. Even when Giroud is doing well, there will come times when he falters. It happens. Sergio Aguero falters too. At those times, Arsenal have no one else, they just stick with Giroud.
I use this example all the time, but look at what happened at the beginning of the season. Giroud faltered and Walcott stepped in. That is the best we have ever seen Walcott and when Giroud returned, it was the best we have ever seen Giroud. Now Walcott is awful and Giroud is in another struggle.
Wouldn’t we want to prolong that consistency at striker for eternity? That can be accomplished by having a set No. 2 striker. It may just be that easy.
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Wherever this season ends up going, Wenger has to sign a striker in the summer. Three guys have passed under his nose and will not be available, but it looks like another, more expensive (gasp) option may be available.
Inter’s captain Mauro Icardi has been falling out with the club and it is said he will be available in the summer for £20m. That isn’t cheap but it certainly isn’t expensive. This season has not gone according to plan for Icardi as he has been left out in crucial matches.
Last season he averaged .68 goals per 90 – a healthy return. Overall, he has scored 44 goals in 91 appearances for the club. That number has dipped since his struggles with the club picked up and they now sit at .49 goals per 90. That is where Arsenal come into it.
Icardi is about to turn 23. That means that apart from being talented and a change of pace, he is also young. If that £20m price is to be believed, it cannot be ignored. Granted, reports indicate that Liverpool had a £22m bid denied in January, that may come down to the stinginess of the winter window.
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Again, let’s not get our hopes up. But if Welbeck returns and capitulates to his ineptitude in front of goal, then perhaps Wenger will see the problem.