Arsenal's Islam Slimani Link Is Terrifying

Arsenal are still being heavily linked to Islam Slimani and it is terrifying. The Algerian striker is simply Jackson Martinez 2.0. The risk is massive.

31 goals in 44 appearances. That is simply stunning. It is something that will grip the attention of teams worldwide. And it is what Islam Slimani was able to do this past season in the Primiera Liga.

Color you impressed right? He was a physical machine, a fleshy tank, a rhinoceros in the box. He was a monster (say that in same voice that the gingerbread man from Shrek said it).

But the fact that Arsenal is linked to him terrifies the bejesus out of me. The reasoning is simple. Slimani compares tick for tick with Jackson Martinez. You know, the guy Arsenal was apparently willing to shell out £30m for before he disappeared into the smog-infested skies of China (that was mean, sorry China).

Jackson Martinez, in his last year in Portugal, scored 34 goals in 49 appearances. It capped off an impressive three year career in Portugal where he accumulated 94 goals in 143 appearances. He was a sure fire thing, right? A muscle mammoth, a howitzer, a regular titanosaur.

Wrong.

He went to Atletico Madrid, which, keep in mind, is one of the best teams in the world, and he failed. He failed hard. Not only did he fail, but his failure was capped off by a preemptive move to China.

At least he’s making good money now.

Slimani has not been as good as Martinez was in Portugal. Slimani has scored 56 goals in 108 appearances. That means that in the previous two years prior to this, he scored just 25 goals across two seasons.

Martinez had scored 60 in his previous two years before his final year. You know, the Martinez that Arsenal was heavily linked to before going to Atletico and ending up in China? Just so we’re on the same page. I don’t want you mistaking him for anyone else.

Reports indicate that Slimani is Arsene Wenger’s next option after Jamie Vardy. To which I laugh, scoff and chortle, simultaneously. Last I heard, Slimani was going to cost between a Vardy and a Lukaku and he has proven next to nada.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

Slimani’s success is predicated on his strength. It’s why Leicester City are pursuing him in light of Watford being stingy with Deeney. He isn’t anything like Vardy. He’s like a bite-sized Giroud with less ability, less strength, less proven and less hair. There is nothing to gain by picking up a 28 year old Primiera Liga star. Nothing.

I repeat. Nothing.

Luckily, I don’t really think there is any basis in this rumor. It just doesn’t make sense. Wenger has experimented with physical strikers galore. He tried Nicklas Bendtner and Marouane Chamakh before Giroud proved the most capable. But even then, Arsenal needs something different and fresh to offset Giroud’s strength. It’s why Wenger pursued Vardy. Not Deeney.

Different and fresh is not synonymous with the same thing, believe it or not. I have an English degree, I would know.

Wenger didn’t sign Martinez and I have faith that, after seeing where Martinez ended up, he won’t sign Slimani either. The parallels are simply glaring. And you know, given Wenger’s history of never giving up on a guy (again, look at Bendtner and Chamakh and their illustriously long Arsenal careers), Slimani would be on the books until he’s 34 and he’d have about three goals across 17 appearances.

Next: 5 Alternatives To Jamie Vardy

It just doesn’t fit. I root for Slimani. I do enjoy watching him play because of his fire and passion. But stay away from Arsenal. There is nothing to be gained here. Go to Italy or France or give Spain a shot, but the Premier League is not kind to physical strikers.

Home/Arsenal Transfer Rumours

Arsenal’s Islam Slimani Link Is Terrifying

By Josh Sippie | Jun 25, 2016

Arsenal are still being heavily linked to Islam Slimani and it is terrifying. The Algerian striker is simply Jackson Martinez 2.0. The risk is massive.

More from Pain in the Arsenal