Arteta’s Arsenal selections drop striker transfer hint

Mikel Arteta is one for finding new solutions to problems in ways out of the ordinary. Throughout his Arsenal tenure he’s dabbled with unconventional methods, the like that may be characteristic of a young and inexperienced manager.

No first choice left-back? Let’s play our sluggish central midfielder there.

No senior experienced striker to choose from in a European semi-final? Let’s play a 20-year-old creative midfielder at false nine having only been introduced into the team four months prior.

With varying degrees of success, he likes to change things up. His most recent short-term plug to an ever increasing hole is the reintroduction of Alexandre Lacazette into the team to operate as a second striker behind Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Mikel Arteta’s selections of Lacazette and Aubameyang hint that his future Arsenal striker should have qualities that both possess

Two of Arsenal’s best results of the season have come since then, at home to Aston Villa and away at Leicester. On this occasion his solution has worked, albeit one that was never due to last. Martin Odegaard has been the victim of the change, and bringing him back into the fold should be the next step for this team.

Signed six months apart for a combined fee of over £100m, having two of the most expensive players in the club’s history not even capable of functioning together was one for the ‘transfer failure’ scrapbook. This all without including Nicolas Pepe.

This newer set of instructions for the strike duo has been effective to a degree, and as Arsenal see out the final season of having both of them together, their selections hint to what Arteta wants from a striker in the years to come.

A new centre-forward will have to be signed in the summer, and in making this team more functional in build-up play and lethal in the penalty box, Arteta playing both Lacazette and Aubameyang nods to him desiring a striker who embodies the better qualities of each.

As age catches up on him, Aubameyang is, in no disrespectful terms, fairly unusable for Arsenal anywhere outside the 18-yard box. Compare that to Lacazette whose entire remit centres around what he does away from the 18-yard box, and you have two vastly different profiles.

Playing both strongly suggests that the manager wants as much of the combined qualities on show in a single player, so much so that he’s sacrificed Odegaard from his team in order to have that on the pitch.

Arsenal need to rediscover their fluidity in attacking areas. The lack of goals is a long-standing concern, just like the quality of chances created in the quest to find them. Can a new striker change that? While most managers would like an Aubameyang and Lacazette hybrid, which route will Arteta go down?

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The Profile of Striker Arsenal Need is Tough to Nail Down

Playing these two good friends in the same team indicates that Arteta wants a bit of both in his future centre-forward. That is the primary takeaway, but no one player can be everything all at once: a lethal runner in behind and deadly finisher, as well as a pivoting tool to bring others into play and be physically dominant?

While it’s a lot to ask, the interest in Tammy Abraham over the summer, someone who has touches of all those traits, provided further indication of his thinking.

Which route Arteta goes down will be fascinating. Having signed players who are technically and tactically flexible, there is the possibility that he ventures towards the Pep Guardiola way of thinking and effectively signs a midfielder who can finish. Seeing Phil Foden, Raheem Sterling, Ferran Torres and Kevin De Bruyne all play as the most advanced player in the City side, given the signings made in north London there is every chance that Arteta follows suit.

A connective striker, more along the lines of Lacazette, but who is faster and more threatening in the box, is one way to go.

But what about a version of Aubameyang that has more presence? Links to the likes of Dusan Vlahovic have been around, and someone of his ilk offers an entirely different set of attributes to this current crop. The Serbian is built like a house, is a ferocious finisher and can dominate on the ground and in the air.

While the perfect striker does not exist, there are those who come close.

An ‘Aubazette’ hybrid would suit all needs, and Arteta fielding both in his starting lineups indicates that his next major purchase will be someone with elements of each, but the possibility is there to lean more towards one than the other in a decision that can have a transformative impact on how this team plays.

It will be the marquee signing, surely. Waiting to find out who is hugely interesting.