Arsenal legend Emmanuel Petit has urged his former club to make a move for Brighton's in-form star Alexis Mac Allister when the transfer window reopens in January.
The Argentine midfielder has been firing on all cylinders so far this season, scoring six goals in just four games for the Seagulls, who are just two points behind leaders Arsenal in fourth. Brighton's impressive start to the campaign has now been disrupted by the departure of manager Graham Potter to Chelsea however, and Petit feels Arsenal transfer chief Edu should be looking to tie up a deal for Mac Allister.
Discussing the Gunners' transfer business over the summer, Petit told Lord Ping : "Not signing [ Liverpool loanee] Arthur Melo isn’t a big miss for Arsenal. But I know they were looking for that link between the midfield and striker.
"If I were Edu, I’d make an offer for Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton – I really like him."
Mac Allister only praised former boss Potter this week, telling Sky Sports: "Tactically he is amazing. Really important for us. I'm really pleased to be working with him."
Asked if he would put Potter in the "elite" category of coaches, Mac Allister replied: "Yeah for sure. Hopefully he will stay here all his life but at the same time we know that may be difficult."
Brighton have already seen two of their star players jump ship this summer, with Chelsea also swooping to sign Marc Cucurella while Yves Bissouma joined Tottenham. It comes after Arsenal bought Ben White from them in a £50million deal last summer, with Petit keen for Mac Allister to be the next to make the move to the Emirates.
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Arsenal are still fairly well-stocked in the attacking midfield areas, with captain Martin Odegaard currently keeping Emile Smith Rowe out of the starting XI. It's been a promising start for Mikel Arteta's men, who bounced back from their sole defeat of the campaign thus far to Manchester United, by beating FC Zurich in Switzerland in Thursday's Europa League clash.
Petit has now backed his old employers to challenge for the Premier League title this season after seeing notable improvements. "We’re seeing things in this Arsenal squad that we haven’t seen before," he added. "Maturity, character and personality and so for them to be able to beat the best teams in the division is the last stop for Arsenal."
Discussing their chances in Europe, Petit assessed: "Arsenal know that the Europa League is very important for them because the winner qualifies for the Champions League.
"I think Arsenal will take the competition very seriously and I’m pretty sure that both Arsenal and Man United will reach the semi-finals."
Arsenal's next scheduled fixture against Everton has been postponed as a mark of respect to Queen Elizabeth II following her death on Thursday, with the Gunners' next match against PSV Eindhoven on September 15 before the trip to Brentford three days later, prior to the international break.
