Ray Parlour believes that Arsenal should prioritise signing central midfielders and a forward this summer as Mikel Arteta bolsters his squad ahead of their return to the Champions League.
The Gunners have finished second in the Premier League, behind winners Manchester City going their final game of the season against Wolves. They have had a much-improved campaign under Arteta but will be gutted they didn't get over the line after falling short in their last eight matches.
In fact, Arsenal have picked up nine points from a possible 24 in recent weeks. Arteta has stressed the need to add to his squad this summer and that's what he is likely to do. In the meantime, ex-Arsenal midfielder Parlour has highlighted the midfield department as an area they should look at.
"The midfield is definitely the place that Arsenal need another player this summer, especially if Granit Xhaka is leaving," Parlour told NetBet Casino. "Declan Rice, Moises Caicedo and Ilkay Gundogan are all top players and would all be brilliant signings for Arsenal.
"Gundogan has been linked with a move to the Emirates and he’s done brilliantly at Manchester City over the years, so I’m sure he’d do a similar job if we were to join Arsenal.
"Caicedo has been excellent for Brighton this season, I’ve seen him a lot. He’s very versatile and can also play at right-back if you need him to, and he’s very strong in that midfield area, so would be a great addition to the squad.
"But I think Declan Rice is the one that everybody really wants to come into that midfield area for Arsenal. He’d have a lot more of a different role for Arsenal than he currently does at West Ham; he’ll be able to get forward more and show more of his ability in that area of the pitch, so he’s someone I’d really love to Arsenal sign. But it’s all going to come down to the money and what sort of price he goes for and the budget Arsenal have.
Parlour also admitted the Gunners need to add up front. Gabriel Jesus has struggled for form in recent months and has just 10 goals in 32 appearances across all competitions. As for Eddie Nketiah, he has four Premier League goals this season, while Leandro Trossard can also play through the middle.
He added: "I also think a new centre-forward is vital for Arsenal next season, I really do. A player who I’ve always said would do well at Arsenal is Ivan Toney. Whether Arsenal can get him given his ban is another matter, but I would be trying really hard to see if there was any chance of a deal there.
"He’s really impressed me for Brentford – his work rate and he’s always in the right place to nick a goal. Bringing in Lautaro Martinez from Inter Milan would also be perfect, he’s the sort of striker Arsenal need to sign.
"I know Gabriel Jesus has been excellent this season, he had that long spell out injured, but he needs to score a few more goals for Arsenal. Eddie Nketiah has done well when he’s been asked, but you need that competition up front for places. We played with four top strikers in the Invincibles team – Dennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry, Kanu and Sylvain Wiltord. We even had Francis Jeffers a little before that, so we had five strikers!
"So Arsenal definitely need another striker. Any player in the mould of Lautaro Martinez, if he’s interested in coming to Arsenal, then Edu will be working to do the best deal for the club."
