Gary Neville admits he's 'disappointed' with Arsenal's recent performances, details their main 'problem' this season

Manchester United legend Gary Nevile believes Arsenal need to sign a striker in the January transfer window if they want a shot at the Premier League title.

The pundit did acknowledge their current options, Eddie Nketiah and Gabriel Jesus, but only as backups. He insists the forwards do not meet the caliber of an elite No. 9.

Neville said on Sky Sports:

"The issue obviously is at the top end of the pitch whereby they have a problem with putting the ball in the back of the net at this moment in time. The striker is an issue."

The former Manchester United defender added:

"They've got two good strikers in Nketiah and Jesus. But they're both [No.] 2 and [No.] 3 strikers for me, they're not No.1 , and they need that no.1 striker."

Among Arsenal's options in the front three positions, Bukayo Saka has been the most efficient this season in terms of output. The England international is the club's top goalscorer, recording nine goals and 12 assists across competitions.

Nketiah has scored six goals and provided four assists in 26 appearances for the Gunners this season. Meanwhile, Jesus has registered seven goals and three assists in the same number of games.

Arsenal have been linked with Brentford striker Ivan Toney this window, with Mikel Arteta reportedly keen on securing his services. The Bees have valued the Englishman, who is currently serving a suspension for violating gambling regulations, at £80 million.

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"They can come back" - Gary Neville backs Arsenal to win PL title despite dip in form

Gary Neville believes Arsenal are in pole position to win the league this season despite their attacking issues and recent slump in form.

The Gunners sat atop the Premier League table just two Matchdays ago. But the north London outfit have moved down to fourth after back-to-back defeats against Fulham and West Ham United. They've won just one of their last five league games.

Manchester City, while level on points with Mikel Arteta's side, have a game in hand. Liverpool are leading the league table and are five points ahead of the Gunners.

While giving his prediction for this season's title race Neville named the reigning champions as runners-up and sees a fourth-place finish for Liverpool. He said:

“I’m not going to change my prediction. I don’t think you can flip-flop a part of the way through the season. They’re not completely out of it, Arsenal."

"I’m a little bit disappointed with them, they’ll be disappointed with themselves and the Arsenal fans will be disappointed in these last two or three weeks because I think they’ve missed an opportunity to put themselves in a great position – not where they would be in a position where you’d say they would win the league, but that four, five, six-point gap they should have with the games they’ve had in the last few weeks, they’ve just got to work it out."

"But they can come back, they can still win the league.”

The Gunners will next face Liverpool in the FA Cup third round on Sunday, January 7.