Arsenal are flying at the moment.
Mikel Arteta’s thumping 4-1 win in the North London Derby on Sunday has seen them go six points clear of second-place Chelsea at the top of the Premier League table and seven points clear of Manchester City.
It was an incredible team performance from the North Londoners, but even so, Eberechi Eze stood out, scoring the first hat-trick in the competition since Alan Sunderland in 1978.
The former Crystal Palace star has been an excellent signing for Arsenal, and now the club are being linked with someone who’d be a dream teammate for him.
Arsenal target dream teammate for Eze
Arsenal may have spent big in the summer, but perhaps due to them being in a great position domestically and in Europe, they are already being linked with some huge players ahead of the winter window.
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Juventus’ sensationally talented Kenan Yıldız, for example, has been touted for an £88m move to the Emirates, as has the £120m Elliot Anderson.
However, the North Londoners are also looking at another goalscoring centre-forward, someone who’d be a dream signing for Eze.
At least, that is according to a recent report from Caught Offside, which claims Arsenal are one of several teams interested in Samu Aghehowa.
In fact, the report goes a step further, revealing that the Gunners are among the sides leading the race for his signature, even if Tottenham Hotspur are just marginally ahead.
However, on top of the competition, one of the hurdles the Premier League leaders will have to overcome to secure the Spaniard’s signature is the fact that it could take around €90m – £79m – to convince Porto to let him go.
Even so, given Samu’s ability, potential and goal record, this is a deal Arsenal should be fighting for, especially as he could be a dream signing for Eze.
Why Samu would be a dream signing for Eze
Now, while it is most certainly simplistic, it is also true that the primary reason Samu would be a dream signing for Eze, and by extension Arsenal, is the fact that he’s an output machine.
After all, whether he’s playing on the wing or in the ten, the former Crystal Palace star will want whoever is playing down the middle to be someone who can reliably score goals and even provide assists for him at times.
Fortunately, that sounds a lot like the Spaniard.
For example, in 44 appearances across all competitions last season, totalling 3,370 minutes, the 21-year-old racked up an impressive tally of 27 goals and three assists.
That comes out to a staggering average of a goal involvement every 1.46 games, or every 112.33 minutes.
Appearances
44
16
Minutes
3,370′
809′
Goals
27
6
Assists
3
1
Goal Involvements per Match
0.68
0.43
Minutes per Goal Involvement
112.33′
115.57′
He’s showing no signs of that being a hot streak either, as so far this season, the monstrous forward has chalked up six goals and one assist in 16 appearances, totalling 809 minutes.
In other words, he is currently averaging a goal involvement every 2.28 games, or more crucially, every 115.57 minutes.
On top of being a forward who’d be able to reliably finish the chances created for him, the former Atletico Madrid gem is also a battering ram of a player.
Standing at 6 foot 4, the four-capped international, whom journalist Zach Lowy described as “one of the best STs in Europe,” is not someone who’d struggle with the physical nature of the Premier League.
If anything, he’d thrive in it and be able to use his impressive stature to bully opposition defenders and create opportunities for himself and his teammates.
Finally, despite being such an imposing figure, he has demonstrated an impressive level of agility and movement through a few seriously impressive strikes.
Ultimately, while the fee is high, Samu is a goalscoring machine who would not only improve Arteta’s squad but also potentially help Eze’s goal and assist tallies explode.
Therefore, Arsenal should do what they can to sign him in January, before another side, like Spurs, gets to him first.
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