"That's a non-negotiable" - Mikel Arteta explains what Arsenal must do to be Premier League title contenders next season

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta believes his side will need to score "90 to 100" goals if they are to compete with the Premier League's best teams.

One of the major problems the Gunners have faced this term is their lack of efficiency in front of goal. Arteta's young side have scored just 43 goals in 27 Premier League matches.

In contrast, league leaders Manchester City have scored 68 goals, second-placed Liverpool have managed 75 and third-placed Chelsea have 57.

Arteta believes his troops will have to substantially raise their goal tally if they are to challenge for the league title next season. He said (as quoted by the Daily Mail):

"To be with the top teams in this season you need to score 90 to 100 goals at least. Somehow you need those goals in the team. Don't ask me how, but you need them."

Alternately, Arteta believes Arsenal will need to keep 30 clean sheets if they are to fight against sides that are currently better than them. He concluded:

"If you don't have that then you need to have 30 clean sheets. In the last 11 games [this season] if we can score 11 goals and concede zero, we're going to win 11 games. Or we can score 35 and concede, we're still going to have 33 points but in a very different way."

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Arsenal desperately need to sign a striker this summer

Arsenal have been increasingly dependent on Alexandre Lacazette and Eddie Nketiah following the departure of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in January.

The Gabonese forward scored seven goals across competitions before leaving the club to join Barcelona. Lacazette and Nketiah, on the other hand, have combined to score just 11 goals in all competitions.

Young midfielder Emile Smith Rowe is currently the only player in the Gunners' squad who has reached the double-figure mark this season. The Englishman has 10 goals across all competitions. Bukayo Saka is second with nine goals while the now-departed Aubameyang is third.

The numbers rather evidently prove that Arsenal need to sign a goalscoring striker in the summer. They were heavily linked with Dusan Vlahovic in January, but the Serbian ended up joining Juventus.

The Gunners are also reportedly looking at other options, including Everton's Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Real Sociedad forward Alexander Isak. LOSC Lille forward Jonathan David and Chelsea's Armando Broja, currently on loan at Southampton, have also been linked with a move to the Emirates.