'It's too late!' – Emmanuel Petit names three strikers Arsenal should have targeted last summer

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Emmanuel Petit has hit out at Arsenal for failing to sign a top striker last summer, claiming the club have left it ‘too late’ to bring in the quality they require up front.

There were loud calls for Arsenal to sign in a proven goalscorer ahead of the 2024/25 season, with the club finishing as runners-up to Manchester City for two years running in the Premier League.

But Raheem Sterling was the only attack-minded player added to Mikel Arteta’s squad and the Chelsea loanee has fallen well short of expectations, managing just one goal in his opening 13 appearances for the Gunners.

Gabriel Jesus’ season-ending injury has only compounded the issue and with Kai Havertz struggling to replicate the form he showed in the back-end of last season as a false No.9, calls for Arsenal to turn to the transfer market have intensified once again.

A host of high-profile forwards have been linked since the January transfer window opened for business, from Juventus’ Dusan Vlahovic to Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo.

But according to ex-Arsenal midfielder Petit, the north London outfit should have been targeting the likes of Alexander Isak, Victor Osimhen and Viktor Gyokeres when they had the chance six months ago.

‘It’s too late now. I think the transfer market in January is not the best,’ Petit told talkSPORT.

‘I know there is some opportunities but it’s just a question of money.

‘I think Isak won’t leave Newcastle, they are fighting for the Champions League as well so that will not happen.

‘Osimhen, probably… Gyokeres, probably… I have no idea but this should have been done before in the summer.’

According to Petit, Arsenal have to begin ‘splashing money on top players’ if they are to achieve their ambitions under Arteta.

‘If you want to win something and you want to be a top club on the European stage then you need to reach the next level. That starts by spending cash, this is how it works in this world,’ the French World Cup winner added.

‘Arsenal is not Brentford, they are not fighting for the same prizes, for the same positions on the table.

‘They’re doing a great job over there [at Brentford], but for Arsenal, if you want to reach the next step, you have to splash money on top players.

‘I don’t mean £50-60m on players that can become a top player, I mean top players like Declan Rice, they splashed £100m on him and look at the quality he brought into this team.

‘Even in the first XI, if you miss players like Saka, Odegaard, we’ve seen that often during the last two or three seasons, they’ve dropped points and aren’t the same team anymore.

‘You need turnover as well if you want to play every three days. I know the strategy at Arsenal and I’m a big fan of Arteta and his staff for what they’ve done over the last few years.

‘But to be honest with you, if you want to compete with the best you need to get to the next level and that means you need to bring top quality players.’

Speaking after Arsenal’s north London derby victory over Tottenham, Arteta confirmed that the club were exploring possible avenues to strengthen their attack.

When asked if Arsenal were actively looking to sign a striker to replace the injured Jesus, the Spaniard told TNT Sports: 'Yes, for sure.

'Because we lost two players, big players, Bukayo [Saka], who can be out for up to three months, that's a long time, and Gabi, who is going to be out for a long, long, long time.'

Asked whether the Gunners will look to capture a forward before the transfer deadline, Arteta replied: 'We are going to try, for sure.

'We are actively looking at it. I think we have lost two very, very important players, we have 14 players in the squad, and we play every three days.

'We will try but let's see who we can get.'

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