Arsenal offered Chelsea flop on emergency striker loan

Arsenal are letting players leave the club left, right and centre, all the while struggling to bring in anyone themselves.

Barring goalkeeper Matt Turner, who won’t be joining in January and will arrive as the Gunners’ number two stopper from New England Revolution in the summer, it’s all quiet on the north London front.

Striker is the big talking point. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the subject of interest from both Barcelona and Juventus, with those clubs making official approaches to Arsenal to sign him on loan until the end of the season. They are offers the club are considering.

Then there is Eddie Nketiah, who for all the world appeared to be staying at the club, who is heavily linked with a move to Newcastle. The talk is that he could even fly to Tyneside over the weekend to complete the deal.

Arsenal offered Chelsea flop Alvaro Morata on emergency striker loan from Atletico Madrid amid centre-forward crisis in January

Which brings Arsenal on to replacements. Allowing the aforementioned pair to go would be nothing short of insane without someone else coming in, an operation that is proving to be difficult to pull off. This overhaul is exciting and overdue, but you don’t embark on a change of wardrobe without having a shopping spree penciled in.

With long-term striker targets more than likely to be left until the summer, if the club are to inject some goals in the centre-forward position then a good ol’ stop-gap might be their best bet. It’s not ideal, and never is, but needs must. Especially when it’s a situation you’ve brought upon yourself.

As for Alvaro Morata, that is one desperate route to take.

The Times report that Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United have all been offered the chance to sign the Atletico Madrid man on loan. Interestingly, those are the terms that Barcelona are keen on to sign Morata, their main target, this month, therefore the reasons for not wanting to let him move there must be centred on not wanting to strengthen a rival.

But as desperation sinks in and the need for someone, anyone, to come in and provide some cover and competition for Lacazette grows ever larger, the man widely deemed as the worst striker to play for Chelsea isn’t exactly jumping off the page.

Morata has some dreadful moments, those that stick out more than his finer showings. He can be effective – 23 goals in 50 Spain outings is admirable – just as he can be exceedingly frustrating. Most importantly, however, was just how underwhelming he was last time he featured in the Premier League.

Boasting vast experience across Europe, his failure to adapt to English football, and his outspoken dislike of London, aren’t especially comforting. It didn’t work for him in his prime, thus at 29 years old the odds are stacked against him for a blazing comeback.

Then again, do Arsenal have much choice? How desperate is desperate?