The last few weeks have been a challenge for Mikel Arteta and Arsenalwho had to replace the creativity of the injured Bukaya Saka within the final third.
The Englishman has scored five and recorded ten assists in his 16 Premier League appearances, but following hamstring surgery, he will be out until at least March – a huge blow to the Gunners’ title ambitions.
Ethan Nwaneri looked to fill the void in recent outings by scoring in Saturday night’s draw with Brighton and Hove Albion – scoring his second top-flight goal of his professional career.
As for the likes of Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard, they often shared attacking roles but struggled to replicate the level of performance of the injured academy graduate.
Such form could see the hierarchy dive into the transfer market to try and strengthen Arteta’s side to help their title ambitions, with one player already on their radar after the transfer window opened this week.
Arsenal in the race to sign the striker with 18 goals in January
According to CaughtOffside, Arsenal is one of a number of English teams in the race to sign Eintracht Frankfurt striker Omar Marmoush before the end of the current window.
However, Manchester City and Liverpool did said to have the upper hand at this stage, with Aston Villa, Newcastle and Chelsea also monitoring the Egyptian’s progress.
The 25-year-old is currently enjoying the best season of his professional career to date, scored 18 times and registered 11 assists in just 24 games – only behind Harry Kane in the Bundesliga top scorers.
As a result of his recent form, the German side requires a fee in the region of €70m (£58m) to part ways with their star forward, but it remains to be seen whether either side is willing to accept such a price.
However, given his form, it could be a potential bargain, leading to comparisons with one of Europe’s leading talents over the past few months.
Why Marmoush could be Arteta’s very own Mbappe
Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappé has established himself as one of the biggest stars in world football in recent years after his impressive form in the attacking third.
The 26-year-old made a cut 14 goals in his first year in Spain after joining the European giants on a free transfer from PSG in the summer, following his outrageous goalscoring record during his time at the Parc des Princes.
Mbappé scored 235 goals in 264 appearances for the Parisians, while he also managed to score a hat-trick in the 2022 World Cup final, becoming only the second player in football history to do so.
Arsenal would undoubtedly love to have a player of Mbappé’s quality, but a move for Marmoush could allow them to sign a player of a similar level, especially when he digs into his core numbers from 2024/25.
As a result of the Egyptian’s performance, he was dubbed as one of the most similar players in the top five European leagues to Real Madrid’s ace by FBref, with the Frankfurt talisman even outdoing the Frenchman in various areas since the start of the campaign.
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How Marmoush compares to Mbappé in the 2024/25 season |
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|---|---|---|
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Statistics (at 90) |
Marmoush |
Mbappé |
|
Games played |
15 |
17 |
|
Goals and assists |
20 |
12 |
|
A goal by a shot into the frame of the goal |
0.4 |
0.2 |
|
Actions to create a shot |
5.7 |
3.3 |
|
Download complete |
50% |
40% |
|
Airports won |
0.40 |
0.06 |
|
Statistics via FBref |
||
Like Mbappe, the Egyptian striker possesses plenty of pace and the ability to beat his own player. This was said by Marmoush, who was recently dubbed as “one of the best European strikers” analyst David Segar, scored more combined goals and assists than the French international – also on average better goal per shot on target – emphasizing its clinical nature in the last third.
He is also finished more tackles and more rebounds won per 90offering that versatile centre-forward that Arteta and the Gunners have craved over the past few seasons.
It could be a risky move to throw nearly £60 million on a player currently enjoying purple, potentially risking the forward not being able to maintain his recent performance levels.
However, Marmoush has shown he is capable of grooming some of the best talent in Europe, which could dramatically improve the club’s forward line in their quest to end a two-decade wait for a league triumph.
With City currently leading the race for his signature, the Gunners’ hierarchy must act quickly to prevent the 25-year-old from missing out and subsequently improving on one of their main rivals.
