19 November 2023 , 13:00
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Arsenal legend Gilberto Silva says the club is in the hunt for midfielders in the January transfer window, with Mikel Arteta's side locked in another Premier League title fight with Manchester City.
The Gunners sit third in the Premier League after 12 games, level on points with second-place Liverpool with 27, and one behind the defending champions. However, some cracks are starting to show, as they did last season, which saw them surrender the title to City in the dying stages of the campaign.
Midfielder Thomas Partey has proven unreliable with his availability, leaving new signing Declan Rice to do the heavy lifting in the midfield, which is a cause of concern for Arsenal Invincible and Brazilian World Cup winner, Silva. The Ghana international is expected to be sidelined for the remainder of 2023 with his latest setback.
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"I heard that they were maybe looking for some midfielders especially because of Partey being injured at times," Silva told Mirror Sport at the Web Summit in Lisbon, where he was promoting his new hate-free football social media platform, Striver, alongside CEO Tim Chase and fellow Brazilian legend, Roberto Carlos, which uses AI technology to moderate abusive content before it appears on the site.
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"I'm not sure if it's 100 percent going to happen but obviously, they have to be aware that this is a very short window and very specific. You have to be like a fisherman sometimes, to grab the right player that you really need that's going to help you to win games and to be useful for the rest of the season. Also to improve the way you play.
"It's not about sometimes bringing a player because you need [them]. Speaking to people there, Edu many times, they are working hard to have the data and what they think is right for the club in terms of targets. The market is very competitive as well, sometimes you have to be fast and not lose the opportunity."
Arsenal legend Gilberto Silva says the Gunners are in another Premier League title fight and are looking at midfielders in January (Getty)Silva has been impressed by his beloved Gunners so far this season but says there's still room for improvement. The 47-year-old says Arteta's squad have done well to get to grips with the return of Champions League football to the Emirates.
"I'm happy about the way they're playing and I believe that the team can improve much more and fight for the title again," Silva continued.
"Last year, they were very close and I guess that in the end you were very close to winning and you lose in the last minute, it's very frustrating. It's very hard, we experienced that in 2002/2003, we were in front for the major part of the competition and then we lost.
Gilberto Silva won the World Cup with Brazil in 2002 (Getty)"But it gives you the hunger to do it again but to win it and I believe that this squad, with Arteta, with the players they've got now, it would be great if they win this year as they've gone through a very tough time as a club.
"In terms of the transition with Arsene [Wenger], another coach, and now with Arteta. In the beginning, it was not so easy for him (Arteta) - but now he's got stability, he's got a good team, and I believe it's time for them to win titles and the Premier League is one of them. Being back in the Champions League was also important for them.
"But for a club like Arsenal, it's not enough, you know? You have to always work hard to be in the best position you can even if you're not winning titles. Be at the top of the league, the top four, playing in the Champions League next season; this has to be the main goal."