Arsenal legend Ray Parlour believes the Premier League challengers need to add ‘top strikers’ to their squad with Brentford’s £60 million-rated Ivan Toney an option.
Of course, a Manchester City side pre-Erling Haaland are an obvious argument against Parlour’s point – no one scored more than Kevin de Bruyne’s 15 during that 2021/22 Premier League winning campaign – but, still, bringing an elite centre-forward on board is never a bad thing.
Haaland netted 21 more goals than Arsenal’s own top scorer last term, the old master Pep Guardiola beating his young pupil Mikel Arteta to domestic glory.
And Parlour believes that, if Arsenal are to close the gap this time around, a marksman of Ivan Toney’s prowess could potentially be the difference between another near miss and a first league title in two decades.
Arsenal eye Brentford striker Ivan Toney
“When I’ve played in teams that were very successful, we’ve had four top strikers,” Parlour tells talkSPORT (18 October, 6am). “I do believe that’s the place they need to be strengthened.
“But it’s all about who’s available, what sort of money clubs want and see if it’s the right deal for Arsenal. Edu (Gaspar, technical director) has done a great job so far with the recruitment.”
According to Fabrizio Romano, Arsenal have already enquired about Toney’s availability, with Arteta ready to make him the club’s number one January target (The Mirror).
‘A good buy’
Toney broke the 20-goal barrier in the Premier League last term. He now appears to have his heart set on a fresh start with his contract ending in just over 18 months’ time.
“Ivan Toney would be a good buy,” adds Parlour, part of Arsene Wenger’s ‘Invincibles’ squad from 2003/04. “So let’s see what happens. They’ve just got to concentrate now on getting to January and keep picking points up.”
Toney returned to training at Brentford in January after a lengthy ban for breaching the FA’s betting rules (The Athletic).
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