There was a fiercely competitive war in the pursuit of Toussay Vlahović, and for good reason. The Fiorentina striker has performed absolutely well at the Purple Lily this season, scoring 16 goals in the league and currently leading the Serie A top scorers list, one goal ahead of Lazio's Immobile. Whether Vlahovic has a chance to finish this season is another matter entirely. The Serb has 18 months left to complete his current contract with Fiorentina and, although they have done their best to link their valuable assets to the new contract, he is not prepared to extend his stay in Italy. As a result, Fiorentina are preparing for the worst, and it seems that their star players will inevitably leave. They hope that in the summer, so that Vlahovic can finish the season, Fiorentina can also prepare accordingly, to ensure that there are enough substitutes. Some interested people also want their attitude towards the youngster to ease in the summer, but they may not even have a chance to complete the transfer at the end of the season.
Reports this week suggest Arsenal are willing to spend huge sums of money this month to secure Vlahović's signing. Last weekend's 1-0 FA Cup loss to Nottingham Forest seemed to convince the club that they needed to bring in a striker as soon as possible, particularly as Nketiah and Lacazette's contract expires in the summer – if the report is credible, they hope to renew the latter as soon as possible – Aubameyang is now out of favor at the Emirates Stadium and the player himself is currently playing with Gabon in cameroon for the Africa Cup of Nations. The question will be how to persuade the player to travel from Italy to England, mainly because Arsenal have not played in the Champions League this season – Vlahovic is believed to be looking to experience a Champions League event – but as the only team to claim to have bid for the player so far this month, the Gunners hope they will draw the youngster to emirates stadium.
One of Arsenal's problems this season has been the lack of a good goalscorer to lead the team and use the midfield to give the goalscorer the opportunities created. The Gunners are fifth in key passes per Premier League game (10.8), but Aubameyang (4) and Lacazette (3) have scored just seven league goals. In fact, Arsenal's top scorer is Smith Ronaldo, and even so, three of his eight goals in the league are scored after coming off the bench. Arteta has a large number of good young attackers, including Smith Rowe, Martinelli, Saka and Odegaard, but the problem has proven to find the right strikers to maximize the opportunities they create. Aubameyang scored four goals in six games in September and October, while one of Lacazette's three goals came in a 5-0 win over Norwich, where the Frenchman scored his fourth goal with six minutes left.
That being said, Lacazette at least offers a tandem of the frontcourt, which benefits those players who move behind him. He may not have been the most prolific goalscorer since joining in 2017, but he has averaged 1.2 key passes per game since the start of last season and his willingness to go deep into defence, which gives the winger more room to use. For Aubameyang, if he doesn't score, he has done little to contribute to the team's arrow position, and his performance is not so much a help as an obstacle. Vlahovic can not only provide a tandem role, but perhaps most importantly his goal efficiency. From the start of the 2020-21 season, the 0.7 key passes per game may be lower than Lacazette and Aubameyang (0.8), but Arsenal signed him to complete the opportunity, not to create it. Interestingly, since the start of last season, Lacazette (27.1%) has a better conversion rate than Vlahovic (23.9%) and Aubameyang (15.2%), but you only have to look at the Serbian's goals to get a sense of his ability in the opponent's penalty area. 37 league goals more than Arsenal's two strikers combined (30).
Of course, there is a view that Vlahovic's goal numbers have improved because he is a point player for Fiorentina, which is true. Since last season, only Frank Casey (13) has scored more penalties than the purple lily star (11). But even so, Fiorentina average fewer passes per game than Arsenal, and scoring 21 goals in the top flight in the same period from the beginning of 2020-21 is a proud statistic. Obviously, he has the ability to strike a fatal blow inside the opponent's penalty area. Since last season, Lacazette and Aubameyang have scored a total of 23 clear goalscoring chances in the Premier League, with the former (51.9%) having a better goal conversion rate than the latter (40.9%). Vlahovic had more clear chances to score goals than any other player in italy's top league during the same period (27) and had a 65.9% goal conversion rate. This season alone, that percentage has risen to 83.3 percent, creating opportunities for Vlahović who will turn them into numbers on the scoreboard.
Also, even if 29.7% of Vlahovic's league goals this season have come from penalties, is that a bad thing? A player can grasp the opportunities in front of him, and penalties are no exception, but that's Arsenal's weakness, especially this season. The Gunners have scored seven of the 10 penalties they've scored since the start of last season, which is a good statistic, but only one of the four penalties this season has hit. In the 2021-22 Premier League season, only Chelsea (7) and West Ham (5) have scored more penalties. By contrast, Vlahovic have scored all 11 penalties since the start of the 2020-21 season, and this composure in the face of pressure will give a huge boost to Arsenal, who have recently strayed from 12 yards away. Links to isaac, Calvert Lewin and Jonathan-David transfers suggest Arsenal are looking for a new striker this month and the Serbian could be the best scorer given Vlahović's record in front of goal. That's key for them to step up the front, especially with Nketiah about to leave, and when they rush to make sure Lacazette doesn't leave for free in the summer.
Given the Frenchman's good form in recent weeks, coupled with his excellent ability to work together, there is a good chance that Lacazette and Vlahović will have a good attacking partnership that will add another dimension to Arsenal's attack. Lacazette retreated deeper to catch the ball and create chances, while Vlahovic scored when those opportunities came. There is no doubt that both will mutually reinforce and Arsenal will be the beneficiaries. Whether the deal can be made is another matter entirely, but it is the Gunners' strong intentions, which will certainly quell fans' desire to increase the team's heavyweight reinforcements. However, if Arsenal reach a deal with Vlahovic this month, they will have a striker who is more capable of bringing the team back into the Champions League, with a dynamic, young fulcrum striker near the opposing penalty area who will have enough personnel to score for the second half of the season.