Arsenal agree personal terms with “unbelievable” target

It might have only been Dinamo Zagreb, but in the context of the last month or so, Arsenal’s win in the Champions League last night felt like a big one.

Mikel Arteta’s side played out a comfortable 3-0 win, and while there were good performances from most of the starters, it was another lacklustre display from Raheem Sterling.

The Chelsea loanee was the latest player to stand in for the injured Bukayo Saka but, rather unsurprisingly, could not replicate even a fraction of Hale Ender’s sensational game-changing impact.

Saka’s season so far
Competition	Prem	UCL	EFL Cup
Appearances	16	5	3
Minutes	1276′	433′	119′
Goals	5	4	0
Assists	10	2	1
Goal Involvements per Match	0.93	1.2	0.33
Minutes per Goal Involvement	85.06′	72.16′	119′
All Stats via Transfermarkt

In his defence, it’s almost an impossible task as, before getting injured last month, the 23-year-old was undoubtedly performing at a world-class level, even if those around him were not.

So, recent reports of the club now agreeing personal terms with an attacker who looks like he could help shoulder some of the attacking burden once he returns from his injury should excite the fans.

Arsenal target Premier League star

According to a recent report from Football Transfers, Arsenal are continuing to look for a new centre-forward this month and have now made progress in the pursuit of Wolverhampton Wanderers star Matheus Cunha.

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The report has revealed that the two-time Premier League runners-up have now reached an agreement on personal terms with the player himself and that any contract will not be a problem. He is allegedly yet to sign the new deal proposed to him by the Old Gold.

However, while this is certainly encouraging news for the North Londoners, the report also clarifies that as things stand, the two teams are very far apart in terms of their valuations of the player, with the West Midlands side demanding a fee in excess of £70m, while the Gunners are unwilling to go above £45m ‘for a player who is not considered a top priority target.’

In all, it looks like Arsenal will need to spend more than they’d like to get this transfer over the line, but given Cunha’s ability, that seems like something worth doing, especially as he could be incredible alongside Saka.

Why Cunha would be an unreal teammate for Saka

So, beyond the positive momentum that such a signing would surely bring to Arsenal this season, there are a couple of key reasons why Cunha would be such an incredible teammate for Saka once he returns from injury, and the first is down to his output.

For example, the Wolves star has been in sensational form this season, and in just 22 appearances, totalling 1717 minutes, has racked up a haul of ten goals and four assists.

This means that the “unbelievable” attacker, as dubbed by journalist Alex Richards, is currently averaging a goal involvement every 1.57 games, or every 122.64 minutes, which for a relegation-threatened side is undeniably brilliant.

Cunha vs Havertz
Player	Cunha	Havertz
Appearances	22	30
Minutes	1717′	2486′
Goals	10	14
Assists	4	4
Goal Involvements per Match	0.63	0.60
Minutes per Goal Involvement	122.64′	138.11′
All Stats via Transfermarkt

Moreover, when you consider that the Gunners’ current top scorer, Kai Havertz, has racked up 14 goals and four assists in 30 appearances, totalling 2486 minutes, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 1.66 games, or 138.11 minutes, you start to imagine how much more dangerous the Hale Ender could be with the far more effective Brazilian to his left.

The second reason that the former Atlético Madrid star would be a dream teammate for the Englishman relates to the first and is the simple fact that he’d occupy defenders.

By this, we mean that, due to his level of output and the dynamic way in which he can get at teams, he’ll be more of a focus for opposition defenders than Havertz currently is, which in turn could free up more space for the North Londoners’ mercurial number seven to operate and thus impact games himself.

Ultimately, Arsenal are in need of some attacking reinforcements this month, and while he may cost more than they would like him to, the club should do what they can to sign Cunha, as not only would he bring more goals to the team himself, but he’d also help Saka reach another level.