Arsenal have been rumoured to be back for Inter Milan striker Lautaro Martinez after an unsuccessful summer pursuit. The Gunners missed out on the Argentine who instead signed a long-term contract, tying him down at the San Siro side till 2026.
Upon their latest pursuit, Mikel Arteta’s side have been informed how much they need to offer for the services of the lethal forward who has been terrorising the Serie A since joining them from his native countryside Racing club.
Aubameyang’s unforeseen departure to Barcelona had already forced the Gunners to be linked with some strikers despite missing out on Vlahovic signature to Juventus.
Arsenal will most likely be without Eddie Nketiah and Alexandre Lacazette come next season as both players will be out-of-contract at the end of the season. Though Martinelli and Folarin Balogun had held the line on a few occasions. a marque signing is expected during this summer transfer window and 24-yrs-old Martinez signing looks to be that perfect addition that fits into the club’s short and long-term plan.
Calciomercato an Italian outlet, disclosed that International would be willing to let go of their talisman if any club offers around €70million (£58.5million) this summer, just a season after refusing to authorize his sale to the Premier League side Arsenal, instead of sanctioning a surprising exit of Belgian international forward Romelu Lukaku.
WHY DOES ARSENAL NEED LAUTARO MARTINEZ?
Martinez has been compared with Manchester City and Argentine icon Kun Aguero, due to their similar attributes and lethal finishing.
Considering Arteta’s demand from his centre forward, coupled with the tweak in Lacazette’s role since being a mainstay in Arsenal’s attack. The Arsenal manager favours a center forward who’s able to link up with players around him among other attributes; this is one of several areas where Martinez excels.
The Argentine forward possesses good link-up play, defensive contribution, and an ability to drop deep off the ball to either press an opponent or lure them out of position, while he’s also a highly creative player and hard-working player, he is capable of assisting goals as well as scoring them himself.
Mikel Arteta has always been heralded as Mr Mentality looking into how professional he was during his playing days and how he envisage his players to be in recent times. His recruitments has also reflected his ideology of having like minds in his team. Long were the days when Arsenal were branded as a team with weak mentality players, especially during the latter stage of Wenger’s era.
Thus far, Lautaro Martinez has been praised for his tenacity, leadership, and mentality on the pitch, which led to his nicknamed El Toro (“The Bull,” in Spanish).
At such an age with vast experience, talent and responsibilities, it remains to be seen if Arsenal will be his next destination this summer.
