Arsenal target “unstoppable” £40m Havertz upgrade

After what felt like an age, the Premier League finally returned over the weekend, and for the first time in a few weeks, Arsenal looked somewhere close to their best.

Mikel Arteta’s side blew the high-flying Nottingham Forest away and ensured that Liverpool couldn’t extend their already mighty nine-point lead atop the table.

However, while the North Londoners ran out 3-0 winners, there were no goals from their strikers, as Gabriel Jesus failed to deliver on the pitch, and Kai Havertz was dropped to the bench altogether.

The German remains the club’s go-to centre-forward, but his lack of goals in recent games suggests there is still room for improvement, making it less surprising to see recent links to a forward who could well replace him, a forward who has shades of Bukayo Saka about him.

Arsenal transfer news

According to a recent report from Caught Offside, Arsenal are one of several sides with a strong interest in Brentford star Bryan Mbeumo.

In fact, alongside the Gunners, the report has revealed that fellow Premier League outfits Newcastle United, Manchester United, Liverpool and Aston Villa are all keen on the forward ahead of a potential move in January.

The level of interest in the Frenchman is far from ideal for the North Londoners, but the good news is that it might not cost them an egregious amount of money to get their man, as the report claims that the Bees value their star attacker at £40m. The Gunners could well be the favourites for his signature with it stated that Mbeumo would likely choose them over the Toon; his two main suitors.

It could be a complicated transfer to get over the line, but given Mbeumo’s sheer quality and versatility, it is worth pursuing, especially as he could be an upgrade on Havertz and has shades of Saka about him.

How Mbeumo compares to Havertz and Saka

Okay, so the first thing to talk about are these similarities to Saka, and there are a few, such as the fact that he’s primarily played off the right despite being a left-footer, which is the same situation the Gunners’ number seven has found himself in.

The second similarity to the Englishman is his raw output, as over the last few seasons, the Hale Ender has become one of the most consistent wingers in England for goals and assists, producing 34 last season and already reaching 13 this year.

Likewise, the Avallon-born ace racked up nine goals and six assists in 27 appearances last season and already has eight goals and one assist in 14 games this year.

Now, it’s this incredible rate of return that also helps with the argument that the Bees ace could be an interesting upgrade on Havertz, as while he has played off the right more than any other position in his career, he’s no stranger to playing down the middle, making 41 appearances as a second striker and 30 as a traditional centre-forward thus far.

In fact, the “unstoppable” star, as dubbed by Premier League legend Alan Shearer, has made those 30 appearances as a number nine for the West Londoners, and in them, has scored 11 goals and provided four assists, which is an undeniably impressive rate of return in a team that are likely midtable at best.

With that said, how do his numbers stack up to those of the former Chelsea star? Well, if we compare their output from the start of last season, it’s a pretty comfortable win for the former Troyes ace.

For example, in 41 appearances, he’s scored 17 goals and provided seven assists, while the German has scored 21 goals and provided eight assists in 68 appearances, which results in a goal involvement every 1.70 and 2.34 games, respectively.

Ultimately, while Mbeumo has spent more time as a winger than a striker in his career, he’s already shown in glimpses that he has what it takes to be an elite number nine and an upgrade on Havertz, who himself hasn’t always played up top for Arteta either.

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