Arsenal intend to sign a new forward this summer and have laid the groundwork in the winter window, despite not bringing in a new addition.
The Gunners thrashed Manchester City 5-1 last weekend but a disappointing 2-0 (4-0 on aggregate) defeat to Newcastle in the Carabao Cup semi-final exposed again the lack of a target striker.
It’s no secret that Mikel Arteta wants a new striker, but ultimately the right targets weren’t available for the Gunners, despite a bid being submitted for Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins, which was swiftly rejected.
Arsenal had a domestic loan spot free, there is a good chance they would have tried to sign Brighton striker Evan Ferguson until the end of the season.
However, because the London club had already brought in Raheem Sterling and Neto on loan from Chelsea and Bournemouth respectively, signing Ferguson on loan was impossible.
Ferguson does have admirers at Arsenal but due to their loan situation, they could only sign him permanently last month, which was not something Brighton wished to sanction.
Sources state that Arsenal did call Brighton to ask about their price demands and the conditions of a permanent deal for Ferguson. But in the end, the 20-year-old striker was happy to reunite with his former manager Graham Potter at West Ham, on a straight loan until the summer.
Arsenal enquired for Igor Jesus and Benjamin Sesko in January
As we reported in mid-January, Botafogo striker Igor Jesus was another possibility for Arsenal last month and they held talks with his agents about a potential deal.
Botafogo were willing to sell Jesus for around £20m and would have preferred an exit in January before their season begins. However, Jesus was more of an Edu ‘legacy’ target rather than someone high on the list of targets following his departure.
