“Would be my one for Arsenal” - Micah Richards names forward Arteta must sign instead of Ivan Toney

Former Manchester City star Micah Richards has urged Arsenal to sign Napoli striker Victor Osimhen over Brentford's Ivan Toney.

The Gunners are looking for solutions to the goalscoring worries this season. Gabriel Jesus has scored just three Premier League goals in 15 appearances, while second-choice Eddie Nketiah has bagged five in 19 league matches.

Resultantly, the north Londoners are also the side to have netted the fewest among the top five Premier League clubs in the 2023-24 campaign (37). Having scored just twice in their last three league ties, Arsenal have slipped to fourth in the standings and are now five points behind leaders Liverpool.

Amid these issues, the Gunners have been linked with a move for Ivan Toney, who is nearing the end of his eight-month ban for breaching betting regulations. However, Richards believes the aforementioned Nigeria international would be better suited at the Emirates.

He told The Rest Is Football podcast (via The Boot Room):

“Osimhen would be my one for Arsenal.”

Osimhen has scored seven goals and assisted two from 13 Serie A appearances this season and could be considering a move, given Napoli's poor form. His club are ninth in the Italian first division, 20 points behind table-toppers Inter Milan.

However, a move for the 25-year-old would reportedly cost the Gunners around £120 million (via The Boot Room). Having already splurged a reportedly whopping £105 million on Declan Rice in the summer, it is unlikely that Mikel Arteta and company would make a high-profile signing in January.

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Pundit believes Arsenal striker has no future under Mikel Arteta

Eddie Nketiah (via Getty Images)

Chris Sutton has delivered his verdict on Eddie Nketiah's future at Arsenal. The England international, who is the second choice to Gabriel Jesus, has seemingly been pushed further down the pecking order by Mikel Arteta.

In the absence of the Brazilian, Arteta preferred midfielder Kai Havertz in the number nine role over Nketiah for the 2-0 FA Cup loss to Liverpool (January 7). Following this decision, Sutton told the It’s All Kicking Off Podcast (via Metro):

"If I’m Eddie Nketiah, I’m wondering how I’m benched and [thinking that] I don’t have a future at Arsenal if I’m not starting as a central striker."

"[Mikel Arteta is] desperate, I get that, but what message does that send to Nketiah if Havertz is at number nine, what is Nketiah thinking? If I’m Nketiah, I’m thinking I can’t stay any longer," he added.

Nketiah came up the ranks at his current side and has since made 158 senior appearances across competitions, bagging 38 goals and nine assists. He won the FA Cup once and the Community Shield on two occasions at the Emirates.