Arsenal are in the market to complete their pursuit for a center forward, with manager Arsene Wenger reportedly keen on bringing either Real Madrid youngster Alvaro Morata or Newcastle loanee Loic Remy from Queens Park Rangers for a reported £10m deal. Arsenal are eyeing two of the continent’s most promising strikers after being heavily reliant on the Frenchman Olivier Giroud up front on his own without much in the name of competition for the lone striker spot at the Emirates.
27-year old Remy has proved his mettle with both QPR and Newcastle and has 18 months of Premier League experience under his belt. Remy scored 14 goals and provided 3 assists in his 26 appearances for the Magpies last season, proving that he has an eye for goal and wouldn’t look out of place in the lone striker role at Arsenal. However, Remy is still an unproven commodity at the highest level and whether a club of Arsenal’s stature may well be too big for him is a question that remains. Many players who have excelled in the Premier league for mid-table teams have often found it difficult to replicate their form for the top teams. While Remy may not be outstanding, he does have the pace to unsettle defences, but whether Remy would be a substantial step up from Giroud is another question that would be playing on Arsene Wenger’s mind.
Morata, on the other hand, is just breaking through the ranks at Real Madrid, and has struggled for game time under Carlo Ancelotti. Morata scored 8 goals in La Liga in just 3 starts and 20 substitute appearances for the Los Blancos, playing the role of a super-sub at the Spanish capital. Morata is tipped to be Emirates bound for a transfer fee in the region of £10m, after a long and arduous saga which has seen the player heavily linked to Arsenal since January. Crucially, Real are expected to include a buyback option, which will last for two years. Without this nifty clause, the Spanish forward would have cost the Gunners close to £25m, but ever the bargain hunter, Arsene Wenger may well have his man for half the price. Crucially, Morata has averaged a goal every 72 minutes in the Spanish League, while Remy has found the net every 150 minutes in the Premier League.
If Arsene Wenger is thinking long-term, then Morata is the man he should be eyeing. Morata is 6 years younger than Remy and has the experience of playing at a top European club, unlike Remy. Last season, Morata averaged 1.7 shots per game for the Los Blancos to Remy’s 3.5 shots per game for Newcastle. However, in terms of potency, the 21-year old youngster scores over Remy with a 69% shot accuracy compared to Remy’s 49. The question is, does Arsene Wenger want a temporary fix to the striker situation at Arsenal, or is he prepared for the long haul? Will Arsene Wenger go for a value for money option at a peak age for a striker or should he put his faith in Morata’s potential?
For Morata, this is the perfect time to move to a club of Arsenal’s pedigree, who can offer him Champions League football and a chance to compete at the very highest level in English football. In both spells of the Florentino Perez era at Real Madrid, there has been no fear of opening the chequebook. The club has shattered the world transfer record on four different occasions in what has been termed by Perez as the “Galactico” era – the superstar worship concept is embedded in the heart of the club, and Perez wouldn’t shy away from splashing the cash once again on a Luis Suarez or Diego Costa. Morata knows that opportunities will be limited at a club like Real Madrid, it is now the player’s ambition and what he wants from his career that matters.
Perez will continue to sell his idea of his “Galacticos” under the “Zidanes y Pavones” concept, revolving around Real Madrid youth player Ivan Pavon, who was in the squad at the time the likes of Zinedine Zidane and David Beckham were donning the white of Real. While the youngsters like Morata and Jese Rodriguez will help to keep the soul of the club intact, Perez’s idea of an all-conquering superstar-filled team still governs the way he club will continue to be run in the future, if of course, he can avoid being reprimanded by UEFA’s Financial Fair Play Rules. It is unlikely that the likes of Morata and Rodriguez will get their due at the Bernabeu, even though both players have shown enough to suggest they are good enough to pull on the Los Blancos shirt. Academy graduates like Juan Mata, Roberto Soldado and Alvaro Negredo have all left the club at an early age, and Morata is most likely the next to look for opportunities elsewhere. For Arsenal, this is the time to rope in the highly rated youngster. Arsenal’s need for a striker is well documented, and Morata, with his pace, technique and ability in front of goal, fits the bill perfectly.
While the wise head would probably go for the safe bet in Remy, Morata has time on his side and once he fine-tunes his overall game, he will be one of the top center forwards in the world in the near future. He is, already at present, more efficient than Remy, scores more often and his six years Remy’s junior. While that could be interpreted as lack of top level experience, fans familiar with La Liga know that Real Madrid’s hunt for “Galacticos” from other clubs instead of backing one of their own could cost them dearly. If only Arsenal go for the right man.
Stats via Whoscored