Ex-Arsenal star tells Arteta he needs to find striker of same standard as rival
Emmanuel Petit has urged Arsenal to sign a striker like Newcastle's Alexander Isak.
Mikel Arteta already has Gabriel Jesus, Eddie Nketiah, Folarin Balogun, Kai Havertz and Leandro Trossard at his disposal, but none of those players scored more than 11 Premier League goals last season (Balogun was on loan at Reims, scoring 21 times in Ligue 1).
Petit, who won a Premier League and FA Cup double with the Gunners in 1998, believes Arteta should use the last week of the transfer window to find a striker of Isak's quality. The Swede has already scored twice for Newcastle this season.
Petit has compared Isak to Arsenal legend Thierry Henry, insisting he has the potential to emulate the great Frenchman. Isak joined Newcastle from Real Sociedad a year ago and scored 10 goals in 22 league games last season, with injury restricting his progress.
"Alexander Isak is tall, aggressive and has great technique," Petit told BettingSites.co.uk. "He wants to score every time he gets the ball but he needs to be more precise in his game. Physically and technically, he has a huge presence on the pitch.
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"If one day someone can tell me that he plays like Thierry Henry, maybe I will believe them, but for the moment it’s really too soon to say that. He's a good striker and he's someone that Arsenal would be very happy to have because he brings different qualities.
"Jesus and Nketiah play in a similar way, they are different in terms of movement, but physically, technically and in their finishing they are not far apart."
Alexander Isak has already scored twice this season (Getty Images)Do you agree with Emmanuel Petit? Let us know in the comments below!
Arsenal have made a perfect start to the new season. Last year's Premier League runners-up defeated Manchester City on penalties to win the Community Shield before beating Nottingham Forest 2-1 at the Emirates and Crystal Palace 1-0 at Selhurst Park.
Yet the Gunners have lacked firepower, finding the target just three times against Palace. Arsenal are missing first-choice striker Gabriel Jesus after he suffered another knee injury. He is expected to be back after September's international break.
Petit added: "I was upset by Nketiah's finishing against Crystal Palace, he had two good chances, and Arsenal need to have a striker that can score 30 goals in all competitions throughout the season, it's something missing at Arsenal if they want to improve.
"Isak is a very good striker and finished very well in the second half of the season last year after being injured. He started well this year again. If he can avoid being injured, because it's been a problem since he arrived, we will see his real qualities."
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