Arsenal are in the transfer market hunting for a good first team striker to rotate with Olivier Giroud and also play alongside him. There were heavy rumours about Karim Benzema being one of the top priorities for Arsenal, but the transfer seems far fetched currently unless Real Madrid try to bring in another superstar for the role and offload Benzema who has had a good season alongside Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo. Here are the stats of the 5 other strikers who happen to be the rumoured transfer targets for Arsene Wenger. We are solely comparing stats that are relevant for a striker and what Arsene Wenger would look to have in his players.
Carlos Vela
Appearances: 35(2)
Goals: 16
Assists: 12
Total Shots: 86
Total Successful Dribbles: 74
Total Offsides: 19
Total Key Passes: 78
Loic Remy
Appearances: 24(2)
Goals: 14
Assists: 3
Total Shots: 90
Total Successful Dribbles: 29
Total Offsides: 32
Total Key Passes: 30
Alvaro Morata
Appearances: 3(20)
Goals: 8
Assists: 0
Total Shots: 29
Total Successful Dribbles: 9
Total Offsides: 12
Total Key Passes: 14
Hulk
Appearances: 23(1)
Goals: 17
Assists: 6
Total Shots: 104
Total Successful Dribbles: 76
Total Offsides: 10
Total Key Passes: 45
Mario Mandzukic
Appearances: 21(9)
Goals: 18
Assists: 4
Total Shots: 76
Total Successful Dribbles: 20
Total Offsides: 8
Total Key Passes: 30
The stats of all these transfer targets are varied because of the difference in the types of strikers in the team. The most regular striker has been Carlos Vela who has managed an amazing tally of 16 goals and 12 assists with Real Sociedad in the Spanish league. Vela also happens to be a bargain buy for Wenger as he has a buy-back clause. Mario Mandzukic, unlike last year has been in and out of the starting line-up and has had rows with his new manager Pep Guardiola who altogether likes a different breed of strikers. Mandzukic has still been prolific for his club with 18 goals in the league and can offer a direct replacement for Olivier Giroud pushing the Frenchman to the bench.
Hulk has been one of the most confident forwards not only in this list, but also in the world, when we consider the number of shots he has taken (104) in his 24 appearances. Hulk brings with him, a world class ability to play alone up front as well as play in the midfield. He is a direct attacker, a top dribbler and a physically strong player who would easily fit in the Premier League. In fact his physical ability and his name Hulk look like a match made for each other!
Loic Remy has been a vital performer for his team as a loanee, as Newcastle have heavily relied on his goals. Without their top scorer of last season, Demba Ba, Remy was expected to get them going and he did exactly that whenever he was called upon. He has been a typical no-nonsense goal-scorer who would play on the shoulder of the last defender and then latch on to a through pass and finish it. His main asset is his clinical shooting as well as pace to fend off defenders. Remy does have a tendency to wander offside though, as he has been caught offside 30 times, which is a high value in this list.
The last of all, Alvaro Morata has been a decent scorer as a substitute for Benzema. At 21, he was always expected to be benched ahead of stars like Ronaldo, Benzema and Bale. Yet, he has justified his place in the team with a consistent tally of goals which has made him another of Wenger’s targets. Morata scored almost all of his 8 goals as a substitute with barely any game time, yet he has proved himself to be more than a handful for the tiring defences whenever he has been called upon, giving Wenger enough confidence to make him among his targets.
At such a young age, Morata has a lot of space for improvement and working under Arsene Wenger with other developing players would help the young Spaniard even more. His playing style would suit Arsenal, who look to have a good finisher with good mobility on the pitch, so that the striker can preferably offer more contrast to Olivier Giroud.
Stats taken from Whoscored