Arsenal may have lacked a central midfield figure capable of grabbing goals for some time now, but that could all be about to change.
Having landed their top attacking target in Gabriel Jesus already this summer, the Gunners appear to have now turned their attentions to bolstering elsewhere within the current transfer window. While a move for versatile Ajax ace Lisandro Martinez may well be off the table as Manchester United continue to close in, there's hope acquisitions will arrive in other areas, namely midfield.
Promising Portuguese playmaker Fabio Vieira has already joined from Porto, but he alone is unlikely to be enough to see Mikel Arteta's side make the step up next season and close the gap to English football's Champions League contenders. A move for Leicester City's Youri Tielemans has been heavily touted in recent times, but an alternative - and perhaps more pressing - option has now emerged in Lyon's Lucas Paqueta.
Though Tielemans boasts a wealth of Premier League experience, something Paqueta has none of, the Brazilian could bear some of the Gunners' goalscoring burden and provide a much-need goal threat from central midfield. It's a luxury Mikel Arteta's side have been devoid of ever since Aaron Ramsey departed back in 2019.
In the seasons since, Arsenal have lacked a presence in midfield capable of contributing centrally and adding an extra element of class to the middle of the park. Emile Smith-Rowe has emerged as the only player of a somewhat similar ilk, though his best work in an Arsenal shirt has come from attacking down the left.
With regards to goals from a central area, Martin Odegaard topped that category last season with just four strikes. It's an issue former Gunners great Ray Parlour pointed out two years' ago - and its one which still remains to this day.
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"The midfield is very defensive-minded," Parlour told talkSPORT back in June of 2020. "Xhaka is not going to score goals, Torreira is not going to score goals, they've lost Ramsey who was a goalscorer from midfield. Arsenal need an attacking midfield who can score you 10 goals a season but you are talking big money."
It seems Arteta and Arsenal technical director Edu may well have finally identified the man to address such concerns. Paqueta has an impressive seven goals in 33 appearances for Brazil to his name, along with some eye-catching numbers at club level.
Last campaign, the Samba star struck 11 times and registered a further seven assists in 34 appearances in a Lyon side which limped to a ninth-placed Ligue 1 finish. In achieving that tally, the 24-year-old ensured he hit double figures for a second successive season.
With Arteta's burgeoning brigade currently short of a dynamic figure capable of hitting such numbers, it comes as little surprise to see Arsenal ready to act on their apparent interest. According to GOAL, the Gunners have already informed Paqueta's representatives that they want to formalise a proposal in the current transfer window. But it seems a deal will be far from straight-forward.
Paqueta has three years left on his current Lyon deal, which is thought to have prompted the French club to slap a £67million price tag on the midfielder. Arsenal are understood to be unwilling to match that asking price while Lyon are said to be in no rush to sell one of their prized assets.
The sizeable fee could prove somewhat problematic, but that's to be expected of a player of Paqueta's quality and profile. Goalscoring box-to-box midfielders have become something of a rare breed in today's game.
Parlour warned his old employers of how they may be forced to stump up "big money" if they are to finally resolve a key area of concern and it seems that's exactly what it'll take. However, with Edu having made no secret of his desire to splash the cash and inspire a squad shake-up this summer, Arsenal may well need to bite the bullet on this one in order to land themselves a long-overdue goalscoring threat from midfield.
