Arsenal have been told to go all out this summer and secure the signing of either Robert Lewandowski or Erling Haaland to lead the line for the Gunners next season.
Mikel Arteta is set to be on the hunt for a new focal point of his Arsenal attack. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had his contract cancelled in January to allow him to complete a free transfer to Barcelona while both Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah both look set to leave the Emirates in the summer.
Aubameyang was ousted from the first team by Arteta after flying home late from a trip to France, with the striker left to train on his own and stripped of the club captaincy.
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Arsenal have been linked with a number of striking targets since last summer. Fiorentina ace Dusan Vlahovic was strongly linked with an Emirates move before ultimately opting to join Juventus in January. Real Sociedad marksman Alexander Isak has also been consistently linked with the Emirates while Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins and Everton's Dominic Calvert-Lewin have been mooted as targets.
But according to former Gunner Kevin Campbell and ex-Aston Villa boss and Borussia Dortmund midfielder Paul Lambert, Arteta and Edu should be aiming higher. Haaland looks likely to leave the Signal Iduna Park at the end of the season when a £62 million release clause becomes active while Lewandowski has been rumoured to want a fresh challenge away from Bayern Munich.
"Would they be in for Haaland? I am sure they would love him, I am sure Mikel Arteta is speaking to [Arsenal midfielder Martin] Odegaard to try to speak to him,” Campbell told Stadium Astro. “But I think that ship has sailed. I think Odegaard can’t spin him to join Arsenal.”
While Lambert agreed that a move for Haaland could prove to be a long-shot, he insisted that a short term deal to bring Lewandowski to the Emirates could be equally as successful.
“If I was Arsenal, and I would take an absolute stab at this one, I would go and try to get Lewandowski from Bayern,” Lambert said. “If he’s making noises to try and get out, I would say ‘you know what, I’m going to try this one’.
"Then I would bring a younger one through who is capable as a number nine. Martinelli, like Kevin says. But I would try and go for it, because Arsenal are a huge club, they’re in London, massive fanbase and history behind it.
"They’ve got everything there. If you don’t buy a raffle ticket, you never know if you can win. Lewandowski, Haaland, why not try it? With Haaland, I agree with Kevin, I’m pretty sure he’s going to go Man City, Madrid or Barcelona. I think that’s way out of their market, but Lewandowski’s a different kettle of fish."
