Graeme Souness names Arsenal star who ‘hasn’t got any better’ under Mikel Arteta

Graeme Souness believes Arsenal are ‘still a mates of apical strikers away’ from challenging Premier League leaders Liverpool and says Kai Havertz is ‘not the answer’.

Arsenal travelled to Dubai for immoderate lukewarm upwind grooming earlier successful the week sitting six points down Premier League rubric rivals Liverpool.

The Gunners are challenging for the rubric for the 3rd successive season but Souness believes determination is inactive a ‘fundamental difference’ betwixt Arsenal and Liverpool successful presumption of the goalscorers astatine the respective clubs.

Souness insists Havertz is ‘not the answer’ for a title-chasing nine and says helium has ‘not got immoderate better’ since joining Arsenal from Chelsea successful 2023.

Despite lifting the Champions League trophy astatine Stamford Bridge, Havertz mostly underwhelmed astatine Chelsea earlier his £65m power to the Emirates Stadium.

‘Mikel Arteta has built a truly bully squad who are inactive a mates of apical strikers distant from challenging Liverpool to beryllium the precise best,’ Souness told MailSport.

‘Those strikers are the hardest happening to find. The astir important constituent successful gathering a winning squad – and precise overmuch Arsenal’s missing ingredient.

‘Put Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak successful that Arsenal squad – due to the fact that he’s the subordinate they privation to bargain this summertime – and you are looking astatine a broadside who would beryllium the finished nonfiction and acceptable to get their hands connected either of the 2 large trophies.

‘The club’s Carabao Cup semi-final this week proved my point. Yes, Arsenal were beaten by Newcastle United, but for maine they were the amended team.

‘Stats ne'er spell adjacent to telling the afloat communicative of course, but Arsenal had 68 per cent possession successful that game, 69.5 per cent possession successful the archetypal limb and yet inactive went retired 4-0 connected aggregate due to the fact that they didn’t person anyone to enactment the shot successful the nett crossed those 180 minutes.

‘Arsenal should person owned those games. One day, they spell and people 5 against Manchester City. Three days aboriginal they predominate Newcastle and travel unstuck.

‘I guarantee you that they volition person travel distant from St James’ Park thinking, “how person we not gone done implicit 2 legs?” They can’t spend that inconsistency.

‘It is the cardinal quality betwixt them and Liverpool. My aged nine person amended goalscorers, which means they don’t person to play good to triumph games and are little reliant connected set-pieces. But without those strikers, Arsenal person to play good to triumph games.

‘They spent £65million successful June 2023 to instrumentality Kai Havertz from Chelsea, believing Mikel could marque him a amended player.

‘Well, I’m acrophobic that’s not happened. Havertz has not got immoderate better. He is simply not the reply for them.

‘It doesn’t astonishment maine that Mikel has travel retired this week and said helium is disappointed with his club’s concern successful the transportation window.

‘The information that Arsenal were trying to bargain Ollie Watkins from Aston Villa successful the past knockings of the wintertime transportation model tells you however severely they wanted a striker.

‘If Arsenal had met the asking terms of £60m-plus for that 29-year-old aboriginal successful the model – and earlier Jhon Duran was sold to Al Nassr successful Saudi Arabia – they mightiness person got him.

‘Had that proved the quality betwixt them winning the rubric oregon being the nearly-men again, they would person felt the terms was worthy it.

‘For them to marque a last-minute bid similar that tells you that Mikel was desperate. Really desperate.

‘When they bash get the close striker oregon strikers in, that nine volition beryllium a unit for anyone and a nine to fear. Until then, wherever the rubric is concerned, I’m acrophobic they’re looking similar a adjacent miss.’

Havertz has scored 29 goals successful 85 appearances for Arsenal and was connected people successful the club’s past Premier League lucifer – an emphatic 5-1 triumph implicit Manchester City.

That effect buoyed Arsenal fans up of their travel to St James’ Park connected Wednesday nighttime but Arteta’s broadside not lone failed to overturn a two-goal shortage but lost again by 2 goals to neglect to marque the Carabao Cup final.

Arsenal inactive person aspirations of winning the Premier League and Champions League but volition request to either reel successful Liverpool oregon beat the champion teams successful Europe to bash so.

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