Arsenal are working to try and bring reinforcements into the club this January as the Gunners attempt to secure Champions League qualification through a top-four finish.
The main striker on the agenda is Fiorentina’s Dusan Vlahovic. The Serbian is being pursued by Arsenal and football.london understands that Edu is doing ‘everything possible’ to complete a move for the forward this winter.
The 21-year-old could provide Mikel Arteta with the additional goals he needs in order to ensure his side are competing in the elite European competition next season. Fail and only Alexandre Lacazette will be an injury away from Eddie Nketiah starting, considering Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang remains exiled after the stripping of his captaincy.
Chelsea’s 1-0 defeat at Manchester City included a tame performance from big summer signing Romelu Lukaku. The Belgian international had one big chance which was well saved by Ederson but otherwise was an isolated figure.
However, after the match, Thomas Tuchel pulled no punches with the breakdown of his forward’s display. Going into uncomfortable detail into the issues in Lukaku’s game. Made even more surprising considering only recently a separate disciplinary issue was settled.
"He had many ball losses without any pressure, many ball losses in very promising circumstances,” Tuchel said.
"He had a huge chance. We want to serve him, but he is part of the team, and the performance upfront, particularly in the first half, we can do much, much better."
Whilst many listened in shock to the German coach's words, it did explain the crucial problems in the tall physical forward’s game.
Lukaku and Vlahovic have been compared for their similar height, physical presence, left-footed preference and Serie A goalscoring feats.
Tuchel adamantly believes that, despite the system appearing to isolate Lukaku, the player himself needs to do more and the same can be applied to Vlahovic.
Shown in his last match for Fiorentina, give the ball to the Serbian in the box and he has a great chance of scoring goals. Yet for Arsenal, he would need to do much more regarding collaborative play and Arteta and Edu must be sure he will do this before jumping on a record deal for the player.
The Arsenal Way spoke to Chloe Beresford, Fiorentina fan and host of the Playmaker Podcast, and she believes that Vlahovic is capable of linking up the play.
Furthermore, there is the expectation that Arteta is not open to bringing in players he feels will not buy into or suit the structure and expectation of his management style.
The Premier League, and Arsenal, in particular, is an unforgiving place regardless of how much a player costs. Nicolas Pepe has fallen away and is playing second fiddle to Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli despite his £72 million price tag.
Should Dusan Vlahovic arrive and not play to the specifications that Arteta expects he will not be afraid to make big calls on it. His summer signing Nuno Tavares was hooked after 30 minutes against Nottingham Forest for not performing as expected.
Tuchel has a problem on his hands with Lukaku at present. His analysis of the Blues’ new striker has explained exactly what Arsenal must avoid should a deal for Vlahovic succeed.
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