Arsenal legend Emmanuel Petit has proposed two blockbuster signings who could take his former club’s title challenge up a notch.
Petit won a Premier League and an FA Cup during his time with the Gunners, also taking in spells with AS Monaco, Barcelona and Chelsea across a distinguished professional career.
The Gunners have only won the league twice since he left. But with Mikel Arteta at the wheel, the north London club have been right in the mix over the past two seasons. And despite their rocky start to this campaign, they are once again expected to be challenging Manchester City and Liverpool when May rolls around.
Arteta and other senior figures at the Emirates Stadium have spent years painstakingly putting together a squad which boasts both quality and depth. But Petit has championed the need for two more arrivals to solve the last remaining weak points, which he believes are up front and on the left-hand side.
“My dream signings for Arsenal to win major silverware are Victor Osimhen and Rafael Leao,” the Frenchman told Casino Hawks. “They need a striker like Osimhen, and Leao would be perfect in a rotation with Gabriel Martinelli, they need that competition.
“I’ve said before that Arsenal don’t have the depth of other teams and that’s what they need to add. Those players would take Arsenal to the next level and make them a real threat in both the Premier League and Champions League under Mikel Arteta.”
Arsenal have been heavily linked with Osimhen in the past, although it was their London rivals, Chelsea, who came closest to signing him this summer. In the end, the 25-year-old joined Galatasaray on loan after a falling-out with parent club Napoli.
And he has picked up where he left off in Italy, netting six goals in his first six Turkish Super Lig games. By the end of this season, Osimhen’s contract will only have 12 months left to run, presenting a possible opportunity for Arsenal to nab him on the cheap.
There is also understood to be a break clause in his Galatasaray loan agreement in case a major European power pounces in January.
Leao may not be so easy to get hold of. The Portuguese international, 25, has three-and-a-half years of his deal left to run at AC Milan. The Italian giants have shown in the past that they will drive a hard bargain, while there is no longer a release clause in his contract.
With three goals and three assists in Serie A this season, Leao would be worthy competition for the struggling Martinelli on Arsenal‘s left wing – if they have deep pockets.