Arsenal could earn £145m as world-class player

Last week ArsenalThe team's chances of winning the Carabao Cup were greatly diminished Alexander Isaac.

No one should really be surprised by that. After scoring goals, the Swede is one of the most in-form players in Europe Ten goals in the last nine matches Across all competitions.

The Gunners have it He was regularly linked to his services He showed Mikel Arteta and company exactly what they were missing by scoring at the Emirates Stadium. Arteta even admitted after the match that he had shown what could happen When you have “real quality” at the top end From the stadium.

So, the club's manager is fully aware that the attacking line needs to boast, but you get the feeling that they are hoping to go beyond what they already have.

The problem is that the team's best player, Bukayo Saka, will be out for some time with a hamstring injury, and his deputy Ethan Nwaneri is now also injured. It's all fairly typical.

Arsenal shortlisted transfer list in 2025

As you would expect at this time of year, there have been a lot of rumors surrounding who could enter Emirates Stadium this year.

The most prominent name is Isak, but with Newcastle He is reportedly demanding a fee approaching £150mThis is not an easy deal.

Athletic Bilbao's Neco Williams has been promoted over the last two transfer windows.

Over the summer, he was only moving if dream club Barcelona came calling, and come January of this year, the Gunners may have to make one of their top earners to pry him out of Spain. So said Arteta He “wants to sign” the player this month.

This January is really about seizing market opportunities and a couple of them are set to go further. But whether there is any interest is unknown.

Indeed, the red hot Frankfurt striker Omar Marmoush is close to moving to Manchester City While the Napoli winger is the Georgian star Hvicha Kvaratskhelia looks like he is on his way to Paris Saint-Germain.

So, where could they go in 2025?

The best replacement for Neco Williams at Arsenal

Reports before Christmas indicated as much Arsenal have contacted representatives of AC Milan star Rafael Leao regarding possible movement.

No official offer has been made but it has been made clear that Leao is likely to move in the summer.

The Almighty is proud Release clause worth £145 millionHowever, the move could be made cheaper and more achievable by his tense relationship with new coach Paulo Fonseca.

Arsenal supporters may be sad to hear another move downplayed as a potential summer opportunity, but the fact of the matter is that signing new players in January is difficult.

The Gunners will lose big time at the end of this season, but they are clearly ready to attack the summer window aggressively.

By luring Leao away from San Siro, he could be a better addition than Isak and Williams.

Fans will, of course, look at Isak's numbers and wonder why he's not the best signing. You can definitely make the case that it should be the first priority. He has proven his quality in the Premier League and cannot stop scoring.

However, Arsenal showed that they can challenge and score a lot of goals with Kai Havertz in the team. In 2023/24, He scored eight goals and made seven assists In just 18 outings. Even this semester he got eight out of 21 which is not a bad number at all.

Of course, the Gunners need more goals but they may lack more quality in wide areas. Saka is the only consistent player in this regard after Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard He contributed ten goals and five assists. For context, that's seven fewer than the total Saka count.

On this evidence, Arsenal need an explosive winger and Leo – “global beater” As data analyst Ben Mattinson puts it, they'll have the perfect profile.

He is also described as a player like… “Premature Thierry Henry,” in the words of Milan coach Stefano PioliCutting inside from the left and beating defenders for fun, his production is certainly better than Williams. Here's how the two compare based on their numbers in 2023/24 and 2024/25.

As we can see, the two are very similar players. They love carrying the ball and facing players, and they both love creativity.

However, it is Leao who is the more consistent goalscorer, the Milan star who handles players more efficiently, and the Portuguese sensation who makes more key passes and progressive passes. All of this suggests that he could be exactly what the doctor ordered when it comes to improving Arsenal's attacking performance on the left side of the pitch.

In the Premier League this season, they are the team that attacks from the left flank the least number of times, but signing a player like Leao would balance the team and provide more chances for the likes of Gabriel Jesus and Havertz to score at a higher rate.

Maybe he is the answer instead of Isak and Williams in the summer.