For a long while now, it has been said that Arsenal need a world-class centre-forward who can either replace Olivier Giroud, or in some instances dovetail with him. Certainly, Arséne Wenger’s attempt to loan Chelsea’s Demba Ba on deadline day as well as his continuous pursuits of both Gonzalo Higuain and Luis Suarez seemed to confirm that he had the same thoughts. So, who would be the perfect player for this role? Robert Lewandowski? Jackson Martinez? Luis Suarez? Not quite, for me.
I believe that the perfect player to become Arsenal’s forward is Borussia Dortmund’s German Marco Reus. Arséne Wenger was apparently interested in signing Reus when he played for Monchengladbach but Dortmund were able to snap him up quickly. However, the fact that Reus has a well publicised release clause as well, as the fact that Dortmund may be out of the Champions League come December 11, may lead to Wenger going back in for the talented German.
While Reus operates mainly on the wing for Dortmund due to the presence of Robert Lewandowski, he has been tried as a striker sometimes and with good results. His deadly combination of pace, intelligence and finishing makes him a perfect player to fill this role for Arsenal who usually try to play passes in behind defences.
Also, while his dribbling may not be of the same level of Luis Suarez, he still possesses enough to get past many players. The fact that he is also very young and yet to reach his prime (24 years of age) means that Wenger could plan for a future that revolves around the likes of Marco Reus, Mesut Özil, Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere and many others. All of these players could reach their peak in a couple of years and could yield immense success for the Gunners.
Now all we need is £29.4 million, Dortmund to go out of the Champions League, Bayern to dominate the Bundesliga and for Wenger, Podolski, Mertesacker, Özil and Rosicky (Reus’ idol) to get on the phone right away and call a certain blonde German…