SETTABLOID

Arsenal found their striker for 20 minutes away to Leicester City but the question moving forward is whether or not Mikel Merino can fill the role until the end of the season. Without much of a goalscoring record behind him, it would certainly be a risk.

The argument is that Merino, by sheer physical presence, is the closest player to Kai Havertz in the Arsenal squad, so should continue to take up the centre-forward spot. He was signed to play as a left-sided midfielder like Havertz, after all.

Merino is the latest in a group to try and replace the blend of strength and output that Granit Xhaka brought in 2022/23. Havertz and Declan Rice have both been tried but have found new and different roles instead.

As a natural box-to-box midfielder, Merino fits the bill on paper. He has had a slow start to life in England, though. It has not been helped by injury and a general tightness to the team’s play all season.

On Saturday, Merino answered the call when Arteta needed it most. Struggling to break down a stubborn Leicester defence – and threatened by the odd counter going the other way – Arsenal were desperate for a moment from somewhere.

Up popped Merino to score just his third and fourth goals of the Premier League season. Both came in the form of a Havertz-type strike as well.

Newcastle United have dented Arsenal’s hopes of signing Alexander Isak. The 25-year-old striker has been heavily linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium recently as Mikel Arteta looks to bolster his frontline.

Isak, who sees his contract at St. James’ Park expire in June 2028, has featured 23 times in the Premier League this season, scoring 17 goals and providing five assists. Playing a key role in Eddie Howe’s side, the Sweden international has given the Magpies the chance to secure European football qualification.

His impressive performances haven’t gone under the radar, with numerous top clubs reportedly keen to land his signature in the summer. However, according to the MailOnline, Newcastle will not allow their big names to leave – even if they miss out on the Champions League.

The Magpies are currently seventh in the English top-flight, and they’re just three points adrift of Manchester City in fourth. The report states Newcastle are in a strong position from a Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) perspective after cashing in on Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh.

The MailOnline add that Howe wants to ‘keep the bulk of his squad’ and add to it before the start of next season. So, the Magpies have essentially ruled out the departures of Isak, as well as Anthony Gordon and Bruno Guimaraes.

Earlier this month, the Newcastle boss was asked just how important the Swede is to the club’s long-term ambitions. Howe said: “We have to try and keep our best players.

Former Manchester City star Sergio Aguero has named the player he believes Arsenal should sign this summer.

The Gunners are currently battling to win the Premier League title but are seven points behind leaders Liverpool in the table. Arsenal will also have ambitions of succeeding in the Champions League this term, but the immediate attention will be on the top-flight duties over the next few weeks.

The outcome of the season could impact what transfer business Arsenal will look to complete in the summer. One position that has been widely debated as in need of strengthening in the Gunners squad is a striker, with a host of players being linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium.

Aguero believes that his compatriot, Julian Alvarez, would be a good signing for Arsenal. Alvarez left Man City last summer to complete a €95million (£78.9million) to Atletico Madrid, and Aguero has explained why the striker would help the Gunners amid their current injury issues with Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus on the sidelines.

Arsenal have begun work ahead of their Premier League clash at home to West Ham. The players have enjoyed some time off following the win at Leicester City and have gone through the dedicated recovery required after the game.

Mikel Arteta led sessions on Tuesday morning which included plenty of young stars in the wake of the injury crisis ongoing at the club. Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli and Takehiro Tomiyasu were all absent from the session as expected as they look to recover from frustrating injuries.

The first thing seen is that the senior and youth players play in different training kits at the moment. The first team squad wore a matte black and grey training kit whereas the youngsters were in navy.

What this tells us is that 22-year-old Nathan Butler-Oyedeji can be seen wearing the black garment. He therefore has been given a squad promotion, like Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri, neither of whom were in the navy strip which is now no surprise.

Where is Jakub Kiwior?

Naturally while spotting the players involved, the checklist comes out to see who was not spotted in training. Despite David Raya being seen, backup goalkeeper Neto was not pictured but the Spaniard was only seen in a group image with no shooting or goalkeeper drills captured.

Arsenal have been suffering considerably with injuries throughout the season and continue to be missing key figures like Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli. Now Kai Havertz has added to that list and will miss the remainder of the campaign following hamstring surgery.

Saka and Martinelli are working hard to be back in the coming weeks and months, but there remain plenty of matches for Mikel Arteta to navigate in the meantime. It will require plenty of outside-the-box thinking with limited attacking options available to him.

However, in other areas of the team, he has been blessed, touch wood, with a rarity of availability. In fact, there are two players he now has access to who have perhaps been forgotten to some degree.

Both Jurrien Timber and Myles Lewis-Skelly have made the right and left, respectively, full-back areas their own. They have climbed the ranks and taken advantage of absences to establish themselves and impress in their showings.

Lewis-Skelly has been a welcome addition and, at just 18 years of age, is a very exciting prospect for both Arsenal and England. A midfielder by trade, his inverted role in the left defensive position has suited Arteta’s style perfectly.

Timber, meanwhile, started life with Ajax as more so a centre-half, but his technical ability has seen him develop nicely into one of the league’s best right-backs. He does, however, lack the offensive traits traditional right-backs have given sides, but the right-attacking pod of Martin Odegaard and Saka has often offset that in the earlier stages of the campaign.

Mikel Merino covered for Kai Havertz superbly well last time out at Arsenal – but Mikel Arteta still needs a new striker.

The Spain international scored both goals as Arsenal recorded a 2-0 win over Leicester last week, keeping the Gunners in the Premier League title race, although depth is worryingly thin across the attacking department.

Not only is Havertz absent, but Gabriel Jesus could also be out until the end of 2025, while Bukayo Saka is still recovering from a torn hamstring too.

With Mikel Arteta abundantly aware Arsenal need a new striker, the Gunners have now started to keep tabs on Youssef En-Nesyri.

Arsenal monitoring Youssef En-Nesyri

A story from Takvim in Turkey now states that Arsenal are keeping an eye on the Morocco international, ahead of a potential summer bid.

En-Nesyri has started 2025 in fantastic form, scoring 14 goals in just 11 appearances for Fenerbahce, which has alerted Manchester United as well as Arsenal.

Takvim add that a bid of €35m (£29m) was made for the Moroccan during the winter transfer window from an unnamed club, although Fenerbahce opted to reject the offer.