Arsenal told 19-goal striker target is ‘not ready’ to be the ‘main man’ by former Gunner

Former Arsenal man Emmanuel Petit has told the Gunners that striker target Hugo Ekitike is not “ready to be the main man” at a top club like theirs.

Arsenal have a number of thriving strikers in their sights at the moment. The No.9 position seems to have been identified as one of the main places needed to improve, in order to take the step from title chasers to title winners.

Ekitike is one of the latest strikers linked with a move to the Emirates. The Frenchman has 19 goals and eight assists to his name in all competitions in club football this season.

However, former Arsenal man Petit does not think he’s the right man at this point in time to lead the Gunners’ front line.

“Honestly, I’ve seen him playing for Paris Saint-Germain. He was a little bit too young to play for a huge club like Paris Saint-Germain,” Petit said.

“Now, he’s having a good time in Germany with Eintracht Frankfurt. I think it’s probably too soon for him to come to a top, top club like Arsenal or Liverpool.

“I’m not sure if he’s ready to be the main man at a club chasing a Premier League title.”

Ekitike’s 13 Bundesliga goals this season have been bettered by only six players, and only Harry Kane is more than five goals ahead of him.

However, his numbers may not be all that much better than Mikel Arteta’s favoured striker Kai Havertz to warrant making a change, particularly one which will cost £67million.

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Ekitike has 19 goals and eight assists in 40 games this season, which is above Havertz’s tallies of 15 goals and five assists, but those have come in 34 games, a gap which could conceivably be closed had the German played as many games.

Petit seemingly thinks higher quality will be needed for Arsenal to go the extra step. They were recently said to have made an official offer for Victor Osimhen, a man who is seen by many as one of the best strikers in the world.

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