Although Arsenal looked solid defensively for the second half of last season, their attacking prowess was below par for most of it. That issue might be resolved if the news reported by SkySports is believed to be true. Sky recently reported that James Maddison of Leicester City might be ‘open to the idea’ of joining the Gunners this summer.
Attacking Worries of Arsenal
Since Mikel Arteta took over as Head Coach at Arsenal, the Gunners have been mediocre at best. After winning the FA Cup in 2020, Arteta has seen his men lose 8 consecutive matches in the Premier League. Although they bounced back during the second half of the season, it was too little too late. This will mark the Gunner’s first season without any European Competition for 24 years.
Dissecting the shortcomings at Arsenal, it is pretty evident that the Gunners are short in the attacking third. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazetter were massively misfiring, while Willian seems to have left his footballing abilities in the other half of London. Nico Pepe is yet to justify his price tag at Emirates Stadium. It seems the side is devoid of someone who can link the midfield and the attack at the carpet.
Emile Smith Rowe was shown massive faith as Arsenal continue to promote Hale End youngsters after Bukayo Saka’s emergence. Since the departure of Mesut Ozil, Smith Rowe has somewhat been able to add flair and a sense of emergency in the attack at Arsenal. His abilities were limited by his experience as he was only integrated into the squad in mid-December. Odegaard looked out of place for most of his time on loan at Arsenal.
It is pretty clear that Arsenal are missing that key player who can drive the ball forward from midfield and play them into the final third for the strikers to pounce.
How James Maddison Is The Perfect Fit For Arsenal
Maddison has been exceptional at Leicester since his arrival from Norwich City. He was mainly deployed as a number 10 by Brendan Rodgers, while Wilfred Ndidi provided cover for the defence. The Englishman has been involved in 27 goals in 118 appearances for the Foxes since 2018. Maddison holds the stat for most chances created at the King Power Stadium in the last season with 51, with 5 of them resulting in a goal. He himself got onto the score sheet on 8 occasions.
Maddison, whose ability on the ball is under no doubt, also possesses a lethal dead-ball accuracy. He was influential for Leicester as they finished over the Gunners for the last two seasons. He is quite familiar with the physical aspect of the English League by now and has shown a massive potential to reach the very top. The former canaries player will fit in right at home at Arsenal as the Gunners look secure at the back with Partey and Lokonga covering him.
Maddison’s arrival at the Emirates will certainly help Mikel Arteta to put his attack together. There were talks of Odegaard returning to Arsenal but he was outvalued by Real Madrid. Arsenal on the other hand will look towards the departure of some players before they can go all-in for Maddison. Having spent around 50 Million Pounds on Ben White, Mikel Arteta will be hoping to offload players like Sead Kolasinac, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Joe Willock to pursue James Maddison.
