Arsenal chasing £50m machine who’s open to moving

It’s not been a full-blown disaster, but it would be fair to say that, as things stand, this season has not gone to plan for Arsenal.

Mikel Arteta’s side are out of the FA Cup, as good as out of the League Cup, and six points off Premier League leaders Liverpool, who have a game in hand and, to top it all off, are set to be without the talismanic Bukayo Saka for at least a couple more months.

The England international injured his hamstring just after Christmas, and while the team has tried to cope without him, it’s evident that they miss his creativity and decisiveness out wide.

Fortunately, recent reports have linked the club with an exceptionally talented winger who could help carry the attacking burden in his absence and then form a sensational partnership with him when he returns.

Arsenal target attacking phenom

According to a recent report from the Independent, Arsenal are one of several clubs interested in Bayern Munich prospect Mathys Tel.

Alongside the Gunners, the report claims that Manchester United, Chelsea, and fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur are keen on signing the incredibly exciting talent.

The good news is that the report has revealed that the Frenchman is ‘very open’ to a move to the Gunners due to the club’s stature and the possibility of regular game time thanks to Arteta’s limited options in attack.

However, the bad news is that according to a separate report from ESPN, Spurs have already seen a €60m – £50m – offer accepted by Bayern, although based on several other stories, it would appear that there is still a chance for Arsenal to get their man, as the 19-year-old is taking his time to decide his next move.

In all, it could be a complicated and costly transfer to get over the line, but given Tel’s ability and immense potential, it’s one worth fighting for, especially as he’d be unreal in the same team as Saka.

Why Tel would be incredible with Saka

So, if Arsenal are able to get their hands on Tel this month and bring him to the Emirates, why would he be so great when playing alongside Saka specifically?

Well, there are a couple of reasons, and the first is his raw output.

Now, the young Frenchman has barely played this season, so not much can be gained by looking at his statistics from it, but last year, even though he still didn’t play much football, he was incredibly effective.

For example, in 41 appearances totalling just 1406 minutes, the “2-footed ball-striking machine,” as dubbed by respected football analyst Ben Mattinson, scored ten goals and provided six assists.

That means he maintained an average of a goal involvement every 2.56 games, or every 87.87 minutes, across a campaign that started when he was just 18, which is simply sensational.

Just imagine having a player as clinical and dangerous as the 19-year-old off the left of a front three, while Saka starts off the right, who, prior to his injury, had racked up a monstrous haul of nine goals and 13 assists in 24 games, the team would be a nightmare to play against for opposition defenders.

The second reason the “elite level goal-scorer,” as dubbed by Mattinson, would be a dream teammate for the Gunners’ number seven is the fact that, due to his output and “top movement,” per Mattinson, he’d force teams to stop double and tripling up on the Hale Ender, thus opening up space for him to operate in.

In short, a winger pairing of Tel and Saka would be dynamic and dangerous enough to terrify any defence in world football, and if one of them ends up being marked out of the game, the other will be right there to score or assist a goal at the drop of a hat.

Ultimately, it might be a lot of money to spend on someone so young, but the Bayern prospect looks like the real deal, so the Gunners must do all they can to ensure he comes to the red side of North London.